I Hate La PushForks Weddings… Okay maybe not
by Luci-Marlena
Summary: Companion to "Support Group." Follows Jake and his thoughts about Leah and how he feels about her. "Looks like I’ll be seeing Leah tomorrow, the happy couple just set a date." WARNING: Mature Themes! Mentions of sex. MA
1. Chapter 1

**Jake POV**

**Set: After BD. It takes place after all of the weddings in "Support Group" except for Embry's. This includes all of the support group's sexcapades during Embry's wedding plans. This chapter is after "sex when we hear about the engagement," and during "sex at the engagement party."**

_I Hate La Push/Forks Weddings… _

_Okay maybe not._

Our moans and grunts filled my ears. "Oh god, oh god, oh Leah! Leah!"

I have no idea how we wound up like this, (again): Leah pressed up against me, back against the side of newly engaged couple's house, dress hiked up around her thighs, grinding herself against me, searching for release.

"Fuck! Yes! Jake, Jake, _Jake!"_

Well, that's not true. I know exactly how we wound up like this.

"Fuck, yes! Oh, god Lee! Lee, I- I-" Leah stifled my moans with a bruising kiss.

It all started with Bella's wedding, and then it grew into something entirely different, something more than just a one night stand. After Bella's wedding came my sister Rachel's. She was getting married to Paul, (Yeah, _Paul Woods_). So, needless to say, I was a little bit pissed…that's not entirely true. I was severely pissed and took it out on a couple of trees when Leah found me. She told me that there was another way to take out my frustration about Paul "joining the family," which is when she grabbed my face and kissed me. Not having done anything more than grope and make-out at Bella's wedding, this encounter was a whole new experience for me.

It was over before either one of us could stop it.

She knew exactly which buttons to push to fuel my frustration and my desire. I grabbed her by her arms and dragged her into the forest, pushing her up against a tree. Not one to waste time, Leah started to unbutton my shirt and kissed my neck the whole time. I pressed her back into the tree and attacked her mouth with mine. Her arms and legs wrapped around me like a vice.

I crushed my body against hers, and growled as she ran her hands down my chest. Irritated with her ridiculous dress, I hiked it up to the tops of her thighs, nearly ripping it off of her as I ran my hands over her hips to cup her ass. Leah groaned into my mouth as she started to grind herself against me. When her teasing became too much, I broke away from the kiss and looked into her eyes, begging for an answer. _Are we really going to do this? _The answering look she gave me was filled with lust and want. Needing no more encouragement, I went to remove her underwear while she unbuckled my belt. She gave a triumphant little smirk when she finally freed me and moaned when I ground myself against her. I was in her in one thrust and she bit into my shoulder to muffle her cry.

I didn't want to think about anything—Bella, my dad, the pack, Paul and Rachel, nothing—just Leah. When I did, the animalistic part of me came out. All I could think about was my desire to claim her, to make sure that she, (and everybody else), knew what we did, that she was with me. That she would only be with me.

Just as quickly as it started, it ended. Leah panted into my neck, trying to calm her breathing as I tried to do the same. Once our breathing had settled, she detangled herself from me and tried to right her clothes again. I buckled my pants and tried not to make any eye contact. I just lost my virginity to Leah Clearwater. I just had hot-as-fuck sex with Leah Clearwater. I had no idea why it happened, but I knew I wanted it to happen again. And again. And again.

Which is why I invented this "support group" after Rachel and Paul's wedding. "We're the only two non-imprinted people left in the pack, Lee," I told her, (Seth having imprinted on his ex-girlfriend from high school). "We need to help each other." After an intense and extremely satisfying sex session, she agreed. Ever since then, we've been going at it like rabbits whenever we can. Which is why we're back in this position: Leah and I fucking each other senseless while another wedding is being planned inside the house. You know, just another Wednesday.

"_JAKE! YES!"_ Leah cries before her head falls onto my shoulder.

I bite my tongue before I call out, "Fuck, I love you, Lee," and plant kisses in the crook of her neck instead.

It was supposed to be easy, simple, just sex: a release of frustration and sexual tension. (But when is _anything_ involving Leah ever "simple" or "easy"?) It turned into something more than sex, something more than just wanting to touch her and make her moan my name, (which I love hearing). It turned into something involving feelings, strong feelings, at least on my part. That's the reason why, the week of Nessie and Nahuel's wedding, I held her hand.

I wanted us to act like a couple, hold hands, be able to touch her in public. I wanted to kiss her, hug her, always be with her, and more importantly, make sure people know she's mine. That she's my Beta, my girlfriend, my Leah, and that no one has a right to touch her.

_Especially_ Collin. Fucking little shit needs to learn how to keep his hands to himself. I nearly phased and ripped his tiny little head off his scrawny body at Jared and Kim's wedding. He had asked Leah for a dance and, under the strict orders of Sue to be "sociable," she agreed. She placed her hands on his shoulders, and his went on her waist. It was tolerable. I still felt the hot flames creeping up my spine when I saw his hands on her, but I was able to resist the urge to phase and kill him, until the fucking pup decided to let his hands "accidentally" drop down to her ass. As soon as I saw his filthy paws on her, I lost it. I stormed over there and dragged Leah off the dance floor under the pretense of fetching her for Kim who needed her all of bridesmaids for some floral emergency.

"Fuck, I really needed that," Leah breathed with a smile.

I nuzzled her neck and smiled, placing kisses along the column of her neck.

"Mmm, Jake," she sighs contentedly.

I love her like this: content, happy, care-free, like the old Leah. The Leah that would watch Power Rangers with her brother, who would rip off the heads of her Barbie's heads because "No one can be that happy all the time!" The real Leah, the happy Leah.

She runs her fingers through my hair and I lean in towards her. It feels so good having her warm, slim fingers combing through my hair.

After a couple minutes of just holding on to one another, Leah gently tugs on my hair and mutters in a reluctant voice, "We should get back inside."

I sigh, not wanting to go back inside and celebrate the engagement of Embry and Maria. (_Another _imprint couple. I know; I was shocked that Maria decided to get married to the love of her life too!). I plant one long, hard kiss on her lips before I slide out of her and pull up my pants, buttoning them and fixing my shirt.

Leah works on trying to smooth the wrinkles in her summer dress and continues to fix her straps, her hair, and anything else that would give our little "group therapy session" away.

"After you." I motion for her to make her way inside first with a cheeky smile and a grand sweep of my arm.

Leah rolls her eyes and fights down a small smile before she walks towards the front door. I linger behind, (so as not to arouse suspicion of both Leah and I coming back in at the same time, _and _to watch her lovely backside), and rake my hands through my hair.

I have feelings for her, strong feelings, that just won't go away.

"Fuck." I love the annoying girl, and she won't let anyone close to her heart. Goddamn Sam Uley had to royally fuck up Leah Clearwater, making any man who finds out that he has any time of romantic feelings for the girl stuck up shit's creek without a paddle.

I let out a breath and make my way inside for another "blissfully happy" imprint couple engagement party. For the next couple of hours, I'm going to be stuck in a house with the two packs and their mothers, all celebrating the love and devotion that will always stay with an imprint. Meanwhile, I'll be there smiling, laughing, and being happy for Embry and his other half, while on the inside, I'm dying to find a way to be with Leah like that. To be with her everyday, be able to look at her, hold her, call her mine without anyone telling me that it's "not right" because we didn't imprint, or that "it would never work between us" because she's Leah and I'm me.

I plaster on a smile as I head inside, which turns genuine when I catch Leah's eye. She rolls her eyes, nodding toward the "arm wrestling" match between Claire and Quil. I walk around the crowded living room. The sexcapade with Leah left me famished, so I head to the food table and pile food onto a plate. I eat, watching and chatting with everyone, always keeping tabs on Leah, who is currently chatting with a very pregnant Emily.

An hour later, people start to shuffle out the door, including Leah. After saying a quick goodbye to Embry and Maria, I start to walk home. Usually I would just phase and run home, but tonight, after almost professing my love for Leah during one of our many sessions, I just want to think.

Slowly going inside, I see my dad sitting at the kitchen table reading the paper. "Jacob, can you come here for a sec," he beckons.

"Yeah, dad?" I sit in the chair opposite him.

"I wanted to talk to you about something," he starts off.

I slide down in my seat, getting comfortable, and gesture for him to continue. "Shoot."

"Well, you're a man now, a man who can make his own decisions and lead his own pack," he says with pride in his voice, "but you still need a father's advice for certain things. Like with women," he tells me with a pointed look.

I don't allow any emotion to show on my face, but oh my fucking god my dad knows! He knows about me and Leah! Oh fuck, fuck, fuck this isn't good.

Faking ignorance, I shrug my shoulders and tell him, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

He gives me a knowing look before shaking his head and muttering, "Just like his mother, can't admit anything."

Clearing his throat he plays along, "Sure, sure. Okay, well I'm beat. I'll see you in the morning."

I relax in my seat, glad that he wasn't going to bring up my "relationship" with Leah.

"Oh, and Jake," he calls as he's wheeling himself into his room.

"Yeah, Dad?"

"You should tell Leah how you feel," he grins before shutting his bedroom door.

Fuck, I spoke too soon; he's never going to let it go now.

I bang my head on the table a couple of times before I spot a beige envelope underneath all of yesterday's mail. I pull it out and curse.

"_Save the Date!_

_On August 12,_

_Maria Chetko and Embry Call_

_Are getting married_

_First Beach, La Push_

_Formal invitation to follow."_

Looks like I'll be seeing Leah tomorrow, the happy couple just set a date.

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything.**

**Thank you Flyaway Dove for your awesome super-fast Beta-ing skills! You're officially my hero.**

**Two things to say:**

**One: First time at anything in the "M" category so be gentle!**

**Two: You all should be ashamed of yourselves. All you authors, (Yeah, you! The one leaning into their computer! Right there!), should be posting. There is a shortage new chapters coming up and I need something to read to distract myself from the evils of Calculus!**

**Heh, anyways… review?**

**Luci**


	2. Chapter 2

"_**Your heart is my Piñata" – Chuck Palahniuk**_

_The Celebrations of Setting the Date:_

_You Really Wake Up the Love in Me_

"Jake," I hear someone whisper in my ear. "Jake, I need to tell you something."

I sigh and close my eyes tighter as I try and block out the voice and fall back asleep.

"Ja-ake! C'mon, this is important," the voice whines.

Smiling, I crack open an eye and see a smiling and naked Leah Clearwater lying next to me, glowing from our recent session. Hair mussed, lips swollen, eyes sparkling, and smiling, she looks like perfection. Looking at her, seeing how she's happy, (a look that hasn't come across her face since her earlier days with Sam), makes my grin widen.

Stifling a yawn, I grab her by the waist and drag her closer to me. "Yeah?"

I inhale her scent and sigh contentedly; being with her like this is so relaxing and domestic. And the fact that I feel so at home with her; Leah Clearwater: bitch, bitter harpy, pack sister, beta, lover, friend extraordinaire, just makes it that much better.

I'm the one with whom she is comfortable. I'm the one who gets to be with her, gets to hold her, and gets to love her. Me. Jacob Black.

She pulls herself closer to me and trails kisses from where my neck meets my shoulder all the way up to my ear where she says the one thing I've been dying to hear, "Jake, I lo-"

Just as Leah is about to profess her love to me, a tap on my window wakes me up.

"Goddamn it! Fucking piece of shit out there is going to pay! Can't anyone get one fucking night's sleep without being interrupted by some shithead throwing rocks at my motherfucking window!" I hiss as I make my way to my window, ready to kick the fucking idiot's ass for waking me up. I don't care who the fuck it is. It could be Taha Aki coming back from the dead to tell me that I am the Chosen One and need to bring the Ring back to Mordor and save the fucking world and I still wouldn't care. I mean, fuck! Leah Clearwater was about to tell me she loved me! That fucking dream is probably going to be the only fucking place where she actually tells me that and this motherfucking shithead goes and interrupts me.

I am going to kick some ass!

I throw open the window and growl out, "What?"

"Oh, someone's testy," Leah teases as she climbs through my window.

What the hell?

"What the hell, Leah?" I whisper-yell. Dad is sleeping in the room below us.

She stands up and shrugs. "What? You're seriously surprised? I got this." She waves a piece of paper, which I'm assuming is the Save the Date, in my face. "So I came over."

She plops herself down on my bed and turns on her side as she continues to talk. "You know, your greeting wasn't exactly warm. If I didn't know any better Black, I'd think that you were actually upset that I came over."

Oh, if only she knew why I was upset. I'm pretty sure if she ever found out what I was thinking, I wouldn't be standing. I can see it now: we'd be in wolf form and I'd accidentally let it slip how I feel about her. She'd be shocked, probably stop her run and just stand there while she tried to process what I just let slip. Me, being the stupid lovesick idiot that I am, would probably just stay where I am, waiting for her to catch up and say something. After a minute or two, she'd finally get herself together and then her best friends, the Profanities, would come. Not to mention their cousins Violent Threats, and Degrading Comments. It would be a Leah-Clearwater-insult family reunion, all being held for the mocking and lecturing of Jacob Black and his big, fat, stupidly lovesick trap.

After some verbal bashing, she'd then haul ass and head straight for me to start the actual bashing. she'd curse, yell, hit, bite, scratch, and generally beat the crap out of me. Yeah, I should definitely tell her why I'm upset.

I look at her and instantly wish I hadn't. She's wearing one of her shirt-dress things that just cover the tops of her thighs, which she knows drive me crazy. Seeing her lying on my bed, looking very comfortable with her sexy smirk makes me want to rip that fucking scrap of fabric she has the nerve to call a dress off of her and make her a permanent fixture on my bed.

In other words, I want to fuck the shit out of Leah Clearwater for the second time today.

Running my eyes up and down her relaxed form again, I ask her with a coy smile, "Oh, well how would you liked to be greeted from now on?"

Her eyes sparkle as she pretends to think. "Hmm, I don't know. Maybe you could kiss me?"

Needing no more encouragement, I launch myself at her and pin her to the bed. My mouth finds hers in a bruising kiss as our tongues battle for dominance. Her tongue curls around mine before she starts to nibble on my lip. Needing more, I plunge my tongue into her mouth and kiss her like I've wanted to ever since I saw her in that dress.

Not one to be submissive, Leah soon takes control of the kiss and her tongue strokes mine. I groan at the contact; she tastes so good today.

As air becomes a priority, I break off the kiss as Leah flips us over, leaving her on top. She grins wickedly before she begins to take control of the situation.

Her hands trail down my chest to the waistband of my boxers before her lips make the same path down. I close my eyes and enjoy the sensation of her lips crawling down my chest. Leah's mouth finally reaches the waistband of my boxers and my eyes snap open and lock with hers. Biting her lip, Leah sends me a sinful glance before grabbing me through my boxers and pumping fast.

My hips buck up to her and I groan at the sensation. Fuck, the things she does to me. But I want more. I don't want her hand, I want all of her. I slap her hand away and flip us over so that I'm in control and setting the pace.

I trail open-mouthed kisses down from behind her ear, down her neck, until I reach the barrier of that godforsaken shirt/dress that she's wearing. I let my hands skim down to the bottom of her dress and I slip my hands up under the fabric, dragging it up to her waist.

"Jake, please," she whines.

Smiling innocently, I ask, "Please what, Leah?"

I let my hands slide further up her body, just below her breasts. She groans, "You know what."

I continue to rub the sides of her body, not touching where she wants it the most, before she starts to get impatient and thrusts her hips upward, begging me to take her dress off. When I don't, Leah lets out an impatient huff before wrapping her legs around my waist, crushing me to her. She flips us over. She moves over me until she is straddling me, pulling off her dress in the process.

At the sight of Leah, I feel a jolt of arousal and grab her face, pulling her down to meet my lips, crushing my mouth to hers. Feeling her tongue curl around mine, I moan and bring her hips down onto me. We both moan at the contact, as Leah starts to thrust her hips against me.

Tearing myself from her lips, I gaze up at her. She's breathing heavily and her eyes are clouded with lust.

Leah shimmies down to the edge of my bed, bringing my boxers with her. She kneels in front of me before crawling back up to my lips and pulling me into a bruising kiss.

She straddles me again, moving herself down to completely engulf me.

"God, you feel so fucking amazing," I murmur into her ear, before she brings herself down onto me again.

"Oh fuck, so do you," Leah mutters bringing her hips down onto me once again. I buck my hips up to hers and Leah moans. With that, she begins to move, up and down, hard and fast.

I grab her hips and brought her down harder and faster to me. Leah keeps on moaning and urging me on.

"Fuck, Jake, right there!" Leah moans as she rotates her hips.

She grabs on a fistful of my hair and pulls me up to her, kissing me hungrily. Leah continues to move on top of me, and my hands tighten their grip on her hips, bringing her down harder each time.

"Jake... Oh, Jake," Leah pants.

My mind is swimming. I'm surrounded by Leah, her smell, her taste, the feel of her. Everywhere.

And all I want is more.

"Fuck, I'm close," I pant.

Leah's head rests at the crook in my neck as she moans, "Me, too."

She starts to circle her hips against mine and that's all it takes. With a loud cry, Leah brings herself down onto me one last time, her climax setting off mine.

"Oh, fuck," Leah gasps as she collapses on the bed beside me.

I look at her lying down in my bed with a content smile on her face, and realize just how she wakes up the love in me. The love and devotion that I thought I would only have for Bella, the love that's stronger and only for her.

Leah.

I lay down beside her and think about how royally fucked my feelings for her are. She turns over and cuddles into my side, her head resting on my chest as she lets out a happy sigh. Wrapping my arms around her waist, I secure her to my side and I think that maybe, just maybe, Leah's finally letting me in.

I wake up and smile. Leah stayed the night, in my bed, in my arms, with me! I can smell Leah everywhere, marking my sheets and my room. My arms search for her in my bed and come up empty.

What? My eyes snap open and scan my room for any sign of her. Surely she wouldn't just leave in the middle of the night, would she? I look all over my tiny room, convinced that she's hidden herself somewhere when I realize that it's Leah and that she wouldn't want to stay and "get attached" since we're just fuck buddies in our little "support group."

Great.

Yeah, she always stirs up these feelings of how I want her. How I need her, how I have to have her. And all she does is leave.

I mean, I usually don't care if she leaves. Hell, most of the time I practically kick her out, but now…I don't know. Now I have this urge to always hold her and keep her by me.

I let out a frustrated sigh as I search through my messy room for clothes.

The first couple of times we did this support business, I thought it was exciting. There's just something about sneaking around and doing something you know is so wrong and forbidden that makes it worth it. And that something is so worth it if it is half as good as Leah Clearwater nibbling on your earlobe, desperately grinding her hips to yours in search of a release.

Sneaking behind everyone's back and doing something so damn wrong and keeping it a secret wasn't just fun, it was hot. We would sneak around, giving each other signals saying when and where. No one caught us, we were even able to keep it from the guys when we phased.

Now, I just want Leah for myself. Well, _officially_ all to myself. This sneaking around has gotten old, fast. I want to be able to hold her hand without her ripping it out of my grasp because one of the guys might see. I want to greet her with a kiss and passionately make out when I have to leave her. I want to be able to wrap my arm around her waist because I feel like having her close, because she belongs there. Most of all, I want to bitch and moan and fight with her before jumping her bones and making up afterwards. I want a fucking relationship, and Leah wants nothing of it.

Since I would rather have her as a fuck buddy for all of eternity than have to deal with the pain of having to see her with someone else, I'll keep my mouth shut. I won't tell her how upset I was that she left in the middle of the night, or how I wanted her to stay, or how I want more. I will shut my big fat trap until she's ready for more.

No matter how long it takes, because she's the only one who can wake up the love in me.

Fuck I'm screwed.

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything.**

**Flyaway Dove, thank you so much, bud! **

**Got this idea from the amazing lyrics of "You really wake up the love in me" by the Duke Spirit. So their I don't own their lyrics in their either.**

**One more thing: two in one day aadarshinah. Can you beat that? Huh? Huh? Thought not.**

**Review please!**

**luci**


	3. Chapter 3

_Planning._

_Plan a) impossible, Plan b) won't work, Plan c) give up now, or Plan d) think of a Plan d)_

After pacing in my room, desperately trying to figure out a way to either: a) not fall in love with Leah anymore, b) discover a way to get Leah to love me, or c) still have sex with Leah while being in love with her, but keeping it a secret, and trying to get her to fall in love with me, I've come up with... absolutely nothing.

Plan A was impossible after last night. Having Leah beside me, just cuddling as we slept, (I am such a girl for admitting this), was amazing. Just feeling her lie on my chest, snuggling into my side and sleeping peacefully was nice. Domestic. _Real._ I can see myself just cuddling with her every night. You know, without the whole abandoning me in the middle of the night leaving me alone and restless the next morning.

Plan B seemed difficult. Okay, it looks to be fucking impossible. How do you get Leah Clearwater to love you? All my life I've just been trying to get the girl to _like_ me, (not that I ever succeeded), and now I want her to _love_ me. Shit, I must be insane.

I mean, it's not like I have anyone to go to about this. No one in La Push, save her family, (Seth, Sue, Harry… I don't think Emily counts anymore…), has been loved by Leah. Sure, once upon a time there was Sam, but he royally fucked that up with the whole Emily-I-love-you-but-she's-my-imprint-and-I'm-supposed-to-be-with-her-forever-love triangle. Not like he would've lasted with Leah anyways. We all saw how "dear Sammy's" eye would wander whenever the cheerleaders would pass by his locker. (Yeah, cheerleaders. Cheerleaders who liked to bake muffins and garden. Go figure.) Like they say: like father, like son.

Which leaves Plan C; another freaking impossible plan. Well, I know that I can keep our sessions a secret. I can love her. I can definitely find it in me to have sex with Leah. But getting her to fall in love with me? Ah, there might be some problems.

I know I'm a good-looking guy, (hey, when you've got it, flaunt it), and she obviously likes our "group sessions", it's just the after part. I just want more than what she gives. Usually she'll catch her breath, kiss me, and then leave. Sometimes, on good days, she'll do what she did last night; curl up beside me and just sleep. Nothing else. No pillow-talk, or rubbing up on each other, just the feel of our bodies resting against one another. Like _that_ ever lasts. The minute our little 'moment' is over she bolts up, throws her clothes on, and bolts out of my sight. I don't want that anymore. When this change of heart happened, I have no idea. All I know is that I want her to be close, to spend the night, to stay with me. To be with me. To show everyone that she doesn't give a flying fuck what they think and that she'd rather spend the night cuddled up next to me than doing anything else. To just show something other than lust for me.

Oh god, I'm turning into one of those girls. You know, the ones who go out with a guy once and then start planning their futures together because the guy said something like, "This was fun. We should do it again sometime. I'll call you," while he has absolutely no intention to call. Yet the girl waits by the phone, confidant that he'll call. Waiting day and night for his call, even a text. And when he doesn't, she'll make excuses for him. "He must be busy, he wouldn't forget to call. Oh no, not him. We're together." Meanwhile he has no intention of calling, texting, or talking to her because he doesn't feel _that way_ towards her. Sadly, the girl is blind by her feelings toward him. The undeniable tingly, warm and right feeling that courses through her veins whenever his arm brushes against hers. Because, surely, if she feels it than he must too.

Yeah. I'm the pathetic girl in that scenario. Pining for Leah when she clearly only wants sex.

Just like Bella only wanted friendship.

Why can't a girl just want me for me? The whole me. Jacob Black: Alpha, shape-shifter, mechanic, hopeless romantic.

Most girls would kill for me, yet all of the girls I want don't want me in _that way_.

Thanks Fate, way to give me a shitty hand in life.

Unable to stay in my room any longer, (Leah's scent is intoxicating and is clouding my mind from any actual thought), I throw on a pair of sweats and make my way downstairs towards the kitchen.

"You have got to me fucking kidding me!" I shout, startling Quil who was trying to get Count Chocula, (Oh the irony), to his chocolaty castle through the maze on the back of the cereal box. Specifically, my cereal box that only had enough cereal for one bowl, which is now being inhaled by Quil.

God, I hate best friends.

"Dude! You totally broke my concentration!" Quil complains through a mouthful of chocolate-frosted goodness and marshmallows.

"You're eating my cereal! What the hell? Don't you have a home with your own cereal to go to?" I ask. Usually I don't really care if Quil, Embry, Seth, or the rest of the guys, (save for Collin-little shit, Sam-prick, and Paul-god damned douche who eats all my food, after marrying my sister and living in their own house), come in to crash on the couch, grab a pair of cutoffs when they accidentally phase, or even have a little something to eat. We're family, it's what we do. I go to their house sometimes, (Thursday is meatloaf night at Brady's house. I may _occasionally _stop by to say hello. If Mrs. Bruster insists that I have a slice, who am I to object?), for food, so it's only fair if I return the favor with an open house.

It's not like Dad minds either. He usually wheels it on down to Sue and Charlie's for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day of the week so food money is never an issue.

But today isn't a good day. Today I woke up to an empty bed after realizing how fucking happy and content I am with Leah. Not to mention that was after our "group session," which was in the middle of my dream with Dream-Leah on the cusp of professing her love to me. So, not only did I wake up alone, surrounded by Leah's scent, searching my sheets for her, but I also never got to hear the one thing that I've wanted to hear from her since I realized I wanted more.

Today is horrible.

And now I have no cereal. No cereal, which means no breakfast, which means hunger. "I'm just so sick of it! I give you guys everything! _EVERYTHING!_ I let you switch patrols at a moment's notice, I let you take days off, I never use the Alpha Command, I let you guys into my home, my closet, my fridge, and you don't even have the decency to leave me my cereal! Is one bowl of cereal, one measly bowl, that big of a deal?" I yell at him.

Tugging at my hair, I start to pace, "You know how much I love _my_ cereal! You _know _that I have a bowl every morning when I wake up! It's the one thing, the _one thing_ that I have to have in the mornings. I bought that cereal! I waited in line for it, I looked for it at the store, I spent my money on it, brought it home and put it away! I did everything for it! I deserve to have the last freaking bowl of cereal!"

Quil gapes at me, un-chewed cereal visible in his mouth. I just stand in front of him, glaring at him and what was supposed to be _my_ bowl of cereal, and try to calm the slight shaking that has taken over my body. After taking a few deep breaths, I finally calm myself to look up at Quil. Sending him a sheepish smile, I shrug my shoulders in a 'Heh, sorry. Hungry werewolf here, what are you gonna do?'

Quil closes his mouth, chews and swallows before nodding his head and saying, "Sorry man, I wouldn't have made the bowl if we had any food at home. Mom had a huge party thing last night for Kim's cousin who's pregnant. Long story short, pregnant women eat more than wolves and I knew you still had some stuff in your fridge."

I nod, letting out a sigh as I tell him, "Yeah, I forgot about that. How was it?"

Taking a cautious spoonful of cereal, (he's probably worried that I'm going to kill him for eating the cereal in my presence), he shrugs. "Meh, as great as it could be I guess."

I nod my head in sympathy and start to search my cupboards for something to eat. Brushing by Quil, I start to look through the pantry, desperate for something edible. Suddenly, Quil stiffens and sniffs.

He puts down his bowl and walks over to me, leaning towards my shoulder and takes a big sniff.

What. The. Hell?

I send him a curious glance and he just stares at me in complete shock. What? So I didn't take a shower this morning, no big deal. It's not like he smells like a bed of roses. Besides, I wasn't the one on patrol last night. So I don't smell like a sweaty furball.

Oh shit.

My scent. My room. My night with Leah. On me. All over. Oh fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.

I smell like Leah. And judging by the freaked out look from Quil, I smell like Leah and sex.

Shit.

"My nose! My precious, virginal nose!" Quil wails.

And I thought my Dad knowing was bad. This is worse.

After having a long talk with Quil, (threats of bodily harm, multiple runs of patrol, the destruction of every _Magic Schoolbus _DVD he owns, and ripping every page of his coloring and philosophy books), he finally agrees to not say a word to anyone. Ever. Not the guys, not his Mom, no one. Even Claire, (who probably wouldn't understand, but still), was banned from this information.

The secret was safe.

"So, how long has this," Quil made some vague hand gestures signifying Leah and mine's 'relationship', "been going on?"

Giving him my best death glare, I tell him, "A while." He should drop this. _Now._

"Oh," Quil nods happily. "You love her?"

I stare at him and think: tell or not tell? He's one of my best friends, and he already knows, plus my dad knows. Could this get any worse?

I give him a look that says, 'What do you think?' And he shakes his head. "Jacob Black: Alpha extraordinaire! Falls hard, and falls fast. Ladies step right up for your dream man!"

Laughing, I punch him in the arm and we wrestle for a bit before he says in awe, "Jacob Black loves Leah Clearwater."

As soon as he says that, I feel as if some of the weight I've been carrying, the pressure of having to keep my relationship and my feelings for Leah a secret, has been lifted, if only slightly. The words have been said, not to the person who should hear them, nor by the person who feels them, but the truth is out.

The feeling's old but it's new to me. It's just like what I felt with Bella, (the need to protect and comfort), but it's different, real, and more…realistic. With Leah I don't have to touch her like she is made of glass, always worrying if she'll trip and break herself. With Leah I think about random things, like what detergent she uses, what's her favorite cookie, (oatmeal double chocolate chip), or if I'll be able to smell her lilac detergent on her sheets tonight.

It's so real and, dear god, marital, that it scares the crap out of me. Especially since I know she doesn't feel the same way. She doesn't think 'I wonder what Jake's up to' or 'Does Jake like chicken parmesan?' (which I totally do) because this isn't a real relationship. She doesn't want any of it and I'm not sure how long I can keep my mouth shut. Or how long Quil can.

The phone rings and Quil, being the closest to the phone, answers, "Hello, Black residence. Quil Ateara speaking."

He nods his head and mutters, "Uh huh, uh huh," a couple times before he says, "Oh you mean Jacob _Black!_ Why didn't you say so? Why yes, he's right here."

Grabbing the phone from his outstretched hand I answer, "Hello?"

"Why is a pedophile answering your phone?" Leah drawls.

Shooting a glare at Quil, (he could have warned me who was on the phone!), I clear my throat before answering, "When the dogs are hungry, they always come to their master looking for food."

I hear Leah's laugh on the other line before she grows serious, "Is he still there?"

Looking at the kitchen table, I see Quil look up at me from his Count Chocula maze and wave before looking back at it. "Unfortunately," I mumble.

"That's too bad. I was hoping you could come over and help me with something," she mutters huskily.

Turning my back to Quil I bring the receiver closer to me before I ask huskily, "Oh yeah? With what exactly?"

I can hear her smile through the phone. "Oh you know, this and that." She trails off. "Maybe discuss a certain invitation that came in the mail. If you're lucky I'll even let you help me with some laundry."

Laundry? What? "Laundry?"

Leah snickers, "Oh I have so much to teach you."

Not wanting her to see me as some inexperienced child, I rush out, "Well when do you want to start this lesson, my dear Teacher?"

I hear a pause on the end of the line before Leah rushes out, "Noon. Don't be late."

"Wouldn't think of it," I tell her before I hear the dial tone.

I hang up the phone on the receiver and spare a glance at the clock on the microwave. 11:23AM. Okay, I have time.

Running upstairs, I go to change before deciding to take a shower. If Quil could smell Leah on me, who knows who else could smell her on me. Not to mention I don't think Leah would appreciate me showing up covered in our combined scent from last night, no matter how amazing it might have been.

Jumping into the shower, I (regretfully) scrub Leah's scent off of me and just let the scalding water, (as scalding as shower water can get for someone with a temperature of about one-oh-nine Fahrenheit), wash the night off of me.

After I towel myself off, I take a comb through my shaggy hair and do something I haven't done in a while: shave. Leaning towards the mirror, I make sure I shave off all of the scruff that has grown in the past months. Washing the shaving cream off of my face, I look at myself and make sure that I didn't miss a spot.

I head back into my room and take on a nearly impossible task: finding something clean, not wrinkled, and not ripped to wear. After searching through the piles of clothes strewn across my room, I'm pretty sure I no longer own anything that fits the description of clean, ironed, and fresh.

In one last attempt to try and find something decent to wear, I check my closet. And, holy hell, there's not just a shirt, but an actual pair of jeans. Both are on their own hanger. It's a miracle. Thank you magical shirt-and-pant fairy, thank-you!

I throw my jeans and shirt on and inspect myself in the hall mirror. Teeth brushed? Check. Hair brushed? Check. Shower? Check. Deodorant? Double check. Boogers? All clear. Clothes on properly? Yep, (They're going to come off anyways, but you can't be too careful). Shoes? I have… one! Wow, I have only one shoe. I am proud. I thought I phased with them all on.

Okay, going shoeless. No big deal, it's not like anyone else in the packs have shoes.

Alright Jake, you're all good to go. You can do this. Just try and follow Plan C: still have sex with Leah while loving her, keeping it a secret, and trying to get her to fall in love with me.

Okay, go get 'em tiger!

I suck at self-pep talks.

Glancing at the clock, it reads 12:08PM. Oh shit! I'm late.

Rushing through the kitchen, I book it out of the house yelling to a confused Quil, "I gotta go!" while running over to Leah's.

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything.**

**Flyaway Dove I bow at your feet. **

**Next up: laundry day. Oh my naïve little readers, there is a special way that Leah does laundry, a very, very special way.**

**I know it's sad, but it's got me excited: I finally got a facebook account. I know, I know, I'm so behind, but I was sharing with my cousin for a while and figured I should just make one myself. And I did! HA! So add me, don't add me, doesn't matter. I'm riding the FB high right now. Okay, back to hmw, projects and reality.**

**Hope you all enjoyed. Read, review, be merry.**

**Lu**

**P.S. no one likes it when you read, alert, and favorite but don't review :( hint, hint.**


	4. Chapter 4

_Joining the Maytag Club_

I run all the way to Leah's, praying that she won't kick my ass for being late.

I stand outside the door and brush myself off before realizing my dilemma. Do I knock, ring the doorbell, or just waltz right in? If it were anyone else in the pack, I would just waltz right in. But this is Leah, which makes things a hell of a lot more complicated.

If I ring the doorbell, it will seem impersonal. I'll be like one of those door-to-door salesmen asking if she wants to buy a magazine subscription. If I knock on the door, she'll think that it's someone outside the packs, (like Phillip Thash, or worse, an imprint), and won't want to open the door. But if I just walk right in… I'm not even sure if I can just walk right in. Will she be pissed that I just invited myself in after showing up late? Whenever the guys just walk inside she always gives a great huff. Although she did invite me over. She knows I'm going to show up soon. Should I just walk in?

What the hell do I do?

Shuffling my feet, I figure that I'll knock on the door and enter, with an, "It's me, Jake!" It's the best of both worlds.

Just as I'm about to knock, I hear Leah call, "I know you're out there! I can hear you, you know!"

Blushing, I wonder how long she knew I was outside just standing in front of her door. I step inside and hear her shuffling around in the kitchen. "I didn't know if I should just-"

"Waltz right in and beg for forgiveness because of your fucked up way of telling time made you twenty minutes late?" Leah interrupts from the kitchen. "Yeah, I get it."

I walk over to the kitchen and am caught off-guard by what I see: Leah… cooking. She glides from one end of the kitchen to the other, taking containers out, putting cans away, adding some liquid to a pot on the stove before checking on something in the oven. I just watch her. "Seth and I are supposed to have a 'family dinner' with Mom and Charlie tonight," she says. "I have to cook something for two werewolf and two human appetites ad clean the house and Mom wants me to do all of this on the fly! It's just so frustrating! You know?" she rants, raking her hands through her hair.

This is one of those funny times I realize that I've been staring way too long and I've stopped breathing. She just looks so… _right._ Hair frazzled, ranting in the kitchen, trying, and failing, to make dinner for Charlie, Sue, Seth, and herself; Leah just looks like a normal girl in the kitchen. She doesn't look like Sam's bitter ex, or a protector of the tribe, or my Beta. She just looks like a gorgeous girl freaking out about dinner with her Mom, her mom's boyfriend, and her brother in the middle of the kitchen.

She looks like a mess and I love it. But do I have any idea what she just said? Nope.

So I just nod.

She smiles; seems like I have the right answer.

As Leah was running around adjusting the temperature and the timers on the food, (which apparently I wasn't allowed to snack on- a fact I picked up on after being slapped for eating a meatball), I let my mind wander. I wonder about "laundry day" and what exactly that means, and then I think about actually doing laundry with her. Folding shirts, matching socks, joking around while doing inconsequential things. _Together._ It would be _our _socks, _our_ shirts, and _our_ laundry in _our _home.

Remember that creepy girl waiting for that guy to call her? Yeah, well she's back and her name is Jake.

Fuck my life. Why do I do this to myself? Why do I always obsess over what I can't have? I did it with Bella and now I'm doing it with Leah. I don't want to mess this up. We have a good thing going: she calls, I show up, we go at it like wild fucking rabbits, we get dressed, we go our separate ways. She doesn't feel anything other than satisfaction after, and I should feel satisfied after. We both win.

Then I had to fucking want more. Well that's done. No more. Jacob Black is done trying to fall in love. I should just enjoy the ride. The arrangement Leah and I have is great. It will only involve the physical from now on. Okay? I know that it would never work out and that she doesn't feel the same way, and that I shouldn't feel this way because we're only doing this for sex, so I won't imagine Leah and I folding socks. I won't imagine us sharing a bed every night. I won't picture us cuddling on the couch watching TV together. And I definitely won't fantasize about Leah Clearwater becoming Leah Black. I will only think about positions, locations, and times that I will need Leah for a release. I will only think about her as my partner in our support group. That's all.

I promise.

Just as I promised myself to not think about Leah in the marital, domestic, committed way, she finished cooking and ranting. Great, now we can do what I came by for: "laundry." I have heard some things about how girls do their laundry thanks to Paul and his many ladies providing all of us guys with a free show, and Leah is flexible, so we are going to have a very, very nice time.

See, I can be pervy. I can stick to my promise.

"I'm really glad you came by, Jake," she smiles at me. In less than twenty words she made my whole damn day and totally made me break my freaking promise. I'm seeing white fences, a nice little house, Leah and I on the couch, long goodbye kisses, cuddling, and us both saying the "L" word.

I stand there for a couple seconds, feeling a huge smile spread on my face, and suddenly, a switch got hit somewhere back in my mind. I realized that I have to have her. I have to have Leah in any capacity because I can't stand to look at her across another crowded room and know that she will not be mine. If all she wants is a sexual relationship, then I will give her the best fucking sexual relationship that she has ever had.

I launch myself across the room and pin her against the counter. Forcing my lips on hers, I push my tongue through her lips. Getting over her initial shock, Leah's hands reach up and grab my hair in tight fists as she curls her tongue around mine.

Breaking the kiss, I start to trail kisses along the column of Leah's neck, just the way she likes it, as she tries to catch her breath. "Mmm, Jake. Jake." She tugs at my hair. "Jake, stop."

Confused, I detach my lips from her neck and send her a questioning glance. Sliding around me, Leah grabs my hand and drags me out of the kitchen. We head for the very back of the house, past the linens closet, past Sue's room, until we finally reach our destination: the laundry room. Leah pulls me inside, shutting the door before turning back to me.

Her hands run up and down my chest as she leans up and mischievously whispers, "Wanna join the Maytag club?"

I give her a confused look. "What? What's the 'Maytag club'?"

This was not in any of Paul's "tutorials."

Now I have this image of the Maytag man, you know the guy from commercials a while back, and think that this 'Maytag club' is probably something different from getting a uniform and ensuring that all of her jeans and fabrics are all washed in new, high efficiency washers. Plus she doesn't have the blue overalls.

Thank god.

"It's like the mile-high club, but with a spin cycle," she tells me with a glint in her eye.

"You're kidding,"

"I'm serious." She locks eyes with me and a grin appears on her face. "Don't you want to try it? It would be exciting, and dangerous. Having to keep quiet so that no one finds out what we're doing. You can't say that you wouldn't enjoy the thrill."

I roll my eyes. "Because the sneaking around we're doing now is so not thrilling."

Leah ignores my comment and starts to kiss the curve of my neck. "C'mon Jake, you know you want to," she teases, rubbing her hips against mine.

Stifling a groan, I choke out, "And when Sue and Seth catch us? What will we tell them then?"

Leah's arms tighten around my neck and she chuckles, "Mom will have to detach herself from Charlie to actually come home and see us."

"Uh, what about, ooh, Seth?" I moan. Leah knows how to use her hips…ooh she _really_ knows how to use her hips.

"Oh Jake, Jakey, Jakey, Jakey," Leah sighs as she starts to nibble on my earlobe. "This is the _laundry_ room. This is the absolute_ last_ place Seth would ever visit in the house."

Leah walks us back so that my back hits the washing machine. Leaning back onto the washing machine, I try to stay strong as Leah continues to kiss and nibble her way up and down my neck. Oh…and now she's using tongue.

Leah's husky whisper fills my right ear, "Besides, you can't tell me you're not the least bit tempted. That you haven't fantasized about doing something like this, that you want this."

Oh, if she only knew about what I thought about. All of the positions, locations, costumes, and times I fantasized her and I together, all fueled by my wolf hormones that are just begging me to take her all the time. To ram myself into her, to claim her, mark her, to prevent any other man from touching her anywhere. There was the time when I first saw her phase and thought about just taking her right then and there on the forest floor, then the dream with her and a can of whipped cream and chocolate sauce, then the fantasy of her and I having a quickie on Sam's favorite chair before a pack meeting at his house…me tying her up…me blindfolding her, me tying her up and then blindfolding her…us defiling Sam's bed…then the one of having her wrapped around me in the water, or the one where we're going at it against a tree (check that one off the list, thank-you Jared and Kim for having an outdoor wedding close to the forest). Then there were other fantasies. The ones fueled by that creepy girl in my head. The girl who just wants me to sneak a freaking ring on her finger and make everyone see that Leah's mine. That she and I are together and that they can't touch her.

But right now, creepy-feelings-girl isn't here. Wolf-I-wanna-have-sex-all-the-time-hormones have taken over.

Love live gonad steroids. They make everything fun.

"Ooh, yeah. Maybe, oh, just a little," I tell her.

Her hand glides down my chest and past my stomach, until she reaches the waistband of my jeans. She reaches into my pants, her hand disappearing between my legs. I throw my head back as Leah strokes me. I start to give in a little. We've never done anything like this before, not even the couple times we've been here alone, and I feel myself growing hard at the idea.

"Lee," I mumble in between kisses, "What about Seth and your mom."

"Gone," she mumbles before attacking my lips once again.

I know this is wrong. All she wants from me is a release. This time she wants it in her family's laundry room. I know I should stop this, but I can't.

This is so bad.

Leah's tongue enters my mouth and our tongues engage in a battle for dominance. Her tongue curls around mine before it strokes the roof of my mouth. I feel a jolt of arousal go through me as she does that again, oh, that feels so good. So, so good.

Well, I _tried_ to say no to this sexcapade.

I start to return her kisses and reason, 'Sue has been spending a lot of time with Charlie lately. And Seth has patrol… whenever. Besides, who really needs to do laundry anyways?'

Leah's hands inch their way up my chest, bringing my shirt with it until it is completely off. Breaking our kiss, Leah's hot mouth leaves a trail of open-mouthed kisses down my chest.

Grabbing her arms, I pull her up and switch places so that her back is pressed against the washing machine and I'm in charge, I'm the Alpha. I undo Leah's shorts and yank off her top. My hand makes its way down in between her legs as I stroke her. Leah throws back her head and moans and I feel her get even wetter. Quickly, she yanks down my pants and underwear before turning around and gripping the back of the washer.

Fuck, how long have I fantasized having Leah in this exact position begging me to take her? Answer: a damn long time. I've wanted this pre-wolf. Hell, pre-Bella.

Stepping up close behind her, I position myself right between her legs, poised at her entrance, and thrust into her, hard. Leah lets out a cry before bucking her hips back into me. We don't think, say, or hear anything, only concentrating on our thrusting hips.

Which is why we didn't hear a car door slam, the front door open, or footsteps in the house before we hear someone call, "Leah? You here?" We both freeze in place at the familiar voice.

"Don't stop," Leah orders, thrusting her hips back against me.

Feeling her tighten around every inch of me I can barely, let alone argue. This moment could not be anymore dangerous or more of a turn-on.

"Fuck," I curse as I pick up my thrusting. I take a hold of Leah's hips, thrusting faster, deeper, and harder.

The footsteps get closer before we hear it call, "Leah?"

Oh shit, they're close.

And, fuck, I'm close.

I thrust even faster and, soon, I feel Leah's body tense and begin to quiver before she yells, _"I'm coming!"_

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything.**

**Flyaway Dove, an awesome beta. Big hugs.**

**Laughed my ass off at that line… and then I got a lot of weird looks from my mom and grandma… oh well.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed :) made my day. Just one thing, if you don't like it, don't review. Okay? And telling me that I need to post faster, kinda not going to get me to post faster. Life happens. School happens. This is by far the worst week of school this semester because of all the assignments and crap I have to hand in before the Christmas break, so I'm not going to drop everything and just write all day. So just be freaking patient. **

**To all of you with nice reviews, thanks. Makes me smile. Let's keep this up shall we? Read, review, be merry.**

**Lu**

**P.S. I gots a poll going on. Take a look.**


	5. Chapter 5

_A Different kind of Invitation_

I thrust even faster and, soon, I feel Leah's body tense and begin to quiver before she yells, _"I'm coming!"_

Leah throws her head back and tries to stifle her moans as she bucks back into me, riding wave after wave of her orgasm. And damn it all if I'm trying not to just fucking moan Leah's name and give away what we're doing.

"Fuck, Ja-ake," Leah moans quietly, bucking her hips one last time before her arms collapse, bringing her head down with her, just resting on the washing machine.

Panting, I try to pry my hands of Leah's waist and get dressed.

I hear the footsteps coming closer, and I start to panic. Leah and I are still naked, connected, and not moving. Someone could just walk in right now and catch us. We are so screwed if they catch us. Fuck, that would be person number _three _to know about our sexcapades, and that's three too many.

I'm finally able to regain the control of the muscles in my hand and begin to pry them off Leah's waist just as the footsteps stop outside of the door. Leah and I both stiffen as we try to not make a sound. Both of our eyes are on the doorknob, waiting for it to turn, all the while thinking, "Shit."

After the longest minute of life, we hear, "Leah, honey, you in there?"

Quickly, I slide out of Leah, ignoring her whimper of protest and my raging hormones that want me to take her _again_, (for the love of god her mother is right outside the door!), and quickly try to throw on my jeans and t-shirt. Tossing Leah her shorts, I watch as she quickly dresses while throwing out a casual, "Yeah Mom, just doing some laundry. I'll be out in a sec."

As Leah is trying to put her shirt on properly, I try to make myself presentable, which proves to be a challenge. Rumpled clothes, swollen lips, flushed face, and shit-eating grins are very hard to fix in such cramped quarters.

Not to mention that after-sex hair is very hard to tame.

Sue's totally going to know. If our hair, lips, face—fuck, our whole freaking appearance doesn't give us away, I'm pretty sure the sounds we made earlier were enough to do so. I know Sue's getting old, but I don't think she's deaf.

"Jake," Leah hisses while fixing the drawstring on her shorts, "fix your shirt!"

Shaking my head, I ask, "What do you mean?"

Rolling her eyes, Leah flicks at my collarbone and jeers, "Your shirt is inside out, _and_ backwards."

Smooth Jake, real smooth; Sue will never catch on if you walk out like that.

With as much patience as a guy who realizes that he has shirt on inside out _and_ backwards in the middle of a tense situation can have, I take off my shirt and put it on right side out and frontwards. "Thanks," I murmur.

Smirking, Leah looks up at me through her lashes and asks in a sultry voice, "Why don't you thank me properly later?"

And Captain Gonad Steroids is back! Oh, and look, he brought lots of friends south of the border. Looking down at my groin, I shake my head. Not exactly the best time to show up, boys.

Trying to control myself, (going for Round #2 with Leah while Sue is twenty feet away isn't the smartest thing to do right now), I take a deep breath and say, "C'mon, let's go before Sue decides to come back and see what's taking you so long."

"You're no fun," Leah pouts before nodding her head and heading out of the laundry room.

Shaking my head, I start to follow after to her only to be stopped a second later. Placing a hand on my chest, Leah stops me and hisses, "Where do you think you're going?"

Giving her a confused look, I tell her slowly, "Going to the kitchen. Going to see Sue?" And why did that come out as a question?

"No," Leah says shaking her head vehemently, "you're not. I'm going to see Mom, and you're going to sneak out the window and go home. Got it?" she asks with a raised brow. Not really looking for an answer from me, Leah nods her head and throws out a "Good," before continuing to head out to the kitchen.

Well, clearly the moment's over and we're right back where we started: two members of a "support group" having just finished a "meeting." Now, group member #2 has just dismissed group member #1, leaving group member #1 feeling very used, neglected, hurt, and unloved.

Perfect. Just give me a dress and a pair of heels and call me Jacobina.

Being the whipped girl that I am, I try to shimmy my way out of the 18x18 window. After popping the screen out and sliding the window as far back as it can go, I try to squeeze my way out. Standing at 6'8" weighing 285 pounds, it's no surprise that the only thing I could get out the window was my head. How in the hell did Leah expect me to get out of here? Do I look like a blonde girl with a blue dress and a bottle of shrinking juice? I'm not some Hobbit that can just run right under a table and not hit my head! I'm a werewolf, a very tall werewolf. I need high ceilings and wide doors. I cannot fit my entire body through a hole in the wall the size of a pizza box!

Okay, okay, new plan: sneak past the kitchen and stealth it all the way out of the door. Leah and Sue will be so busy talking that they won't even notice me walking by. Yes, this plan will work.

Satisfied with my brilliant plan of escape, I open the laundry room door as quietly as I can and begin to stealth my way out of the Clearwater home. Passing by Sue's room, I make my way over to the linen closet and hug the wall, listening to see if anyone is coming this way. Hearing Leah rant to Sue about her day and how she never, ever, ever wants to look under Seth's bed ever again, I start to creep my way over to the kitchen.

Just as I reach the kitchen, Sue turns from her spot at the counter and spots me. "Oh, hello Jake. I didn't know you were here." She greets me with a smile.

Leah glares from her seat on the counter and gives me a look that says, "I thought I told you to leave without seeing my mother." I look back at her and give her a shrug as if saying, "Hey, I'm freakishly large and your window is ridiculously small, you do the math."

Ignoring our exchange, Sue waits for my answer. "Uh, yeah," I nod, "Leah said she has a full plate today and I came over to help."

Sue looks from Leah to me, and back again before smiling a huge smile. "Well, isn't that so sweet." She shoots Leah a look. "You're such a good boy."

Scratching the back of my neck, I chuckle, "It was no problem."

Enjoying how uncomfortable I am, Leah smirks and announces, "Oh yeah, Jake _loves_ doing laundry." I shoot her a look, telling her to stop. She doesn't.

"I called him and told him my plans for today and he just _jumped_ on the idea of doing laundry with me," she chuckles. "He couldn't come over fast enough."

Oh god, why is she doing this to me? Does she enjoy torturing me? Embarrassing me?

Yes. Because she's Leah and it's what she does.

Trying to calm down my blush, I stare at Leah and say seriously, "It's true, I love doing laundry. It's really fun." I smile at Sue and then an idea hits me.

"I look forward to laundry day. I always look forward to using a great smelling detergent and to just touch the softness of a freshly washed and dried shirt and pants," I sigh dramatically, pretending to be overwhelmed by the mere wonderful idea of doing laundry.

Sue stares at me in either concern or wonder, while Leah looks like she's going to pop a vessel trying to control her laughter.

"I really love to fold the laundry, more than anything. I'll just sit on the couch, listen to music or watch TV or a movie while folding the laundry, which makes it a fun job. And it's really not a bad job or a hard thing to do, if you keep up on it, and do it just when you have enough for a load, and take care of it right away," I rant.

"It's only a pain in the butt if you let your laundry pile up," Leah agrees with a smirk.

Sue looks between us, trying to figure us out, before shaking it off and smiling at me. "Jake, would you like to have dinner with us tonight?"

Was I just invited to dinner?

"NO!" Leah shouts.

Guess not. Well, okay then. I guess I'm not even going to answer.

"Leah!" Sue admonishes. "Let the boy speak!"

"No, it's okay, Sue," I start before Leah interrupts.

"He's busy," she says shortly.

Sue puts her hands on her hip, cocks an eyebrow and says, "Well, if he's busy, he can tell me for himself. Now can't he."

Leah crosses her arms over her chest, and "Humphs," before both she and Sue turn and look at me expectantly.

I'm about to answer before Sue grins and says, "You know what, invite your Dad to come by too."

Pissed off, Leah throws her hands up in the air and shouts, "Oh yeah! Just invite the whole damn rez over, Mom! It's not like I slaved over a hot stove all day! Or that I made just enough for four people! But you go on right ahead and invite Jake, and Billy, and everyone else over! I'm totally fine with it!"

Sue rolls her eyes. "You're being so dramatic Leah."

Leah gets up from her spot on the counter and makes her way out of the kitchen. "You know what? I don't care anymore. Invite Jake, invite Billy, hell, invite the _Cullens_," she sneers. "I'm going to take a well-deserved shower."

Leah gives me a pointed look when she says 'shower,' (no, unfortunately that wasn't an invitation), telling me that I need to wash off our little laundry day adventure when I get home as well. Besides, I know why she's really taking a shower. We don't want Seth to smell me on his sister when he comes home, especially when he's supposed to be eating a family dinner with Leah, Sue, and Charlie, (and possibly me and Billy).

As she passes by me, I hear Leah mutter about being, "unappreciated," and sick of not being "informed on the number of dinner guests" as she stomps upstairs. After an awkward silence in the kitchen with just me and Sue, Leah stomps back into the kitchen and starts pushing me out the front door, ignoring Sue's shouts of protest.

After kicking me out of the house with a mumbled, "Call you later," I dust myself off and get ready to walk home as Leah stomps back into the house. Just as I'm about to leave, Sue sticks her head outside and yells for me to tell Billy that the both of us should be over by six tonight and to not worry about Leah and her attitude.

As I'm walking home, I replay our "laundry time" in my head. Fuck, it felt so good to be with Leah. And then I realized that this was the first time where Leah and I had sex. Not one "group member" having sex with another "group member," just me and Leah. The two of us together.

Finally.

She just kicked me out of her house, literally, physically shoving me out of the door, but that doesn't matter. We had sex. Us. Jake and Leah.

Right now, Jacobina, (yes, I have decided to name the creepy stalker girl inside me seeing as whenever something like _this_ happens she always returns), is jumping for fucking joy. This is like that guy not only texting, but also fucking calling her.

Yeah, it's _that_ big of a deal.

Right now, Jacobina is getting all excited theorizing how and when we'll get married, how many kids we'll have, what type of house we'll get, who we'll invite to the wedding, who will sleep on which side of the bed, who will learn how to cook, (since it's obvious neither one of us is very kitchen-savvy); you know, general creepy stalkery things that overly-attached girls think about.

_But it's just so __cute__._

God, Jacobina is taking over.

Deep breaths Jake, just take deep breaths. It's all in your imagination. Nothing is going on. It's just sex and that's all it will ever be.

Finally calm, Jacobina comes to battle with my sanity.

_But she called you over_, she reasons, _she obviously wanted you to come over._

_Yeah_, I argue, _to do "laundry."_

_Humph, you call her telling you about all of her problems doing "laundry"?_ she huffs.

_Um, yeah?_

Jacobina sighs. _You are such a guy. _

_Really? Last time I checked I was giggling and fantasizing about marriage and kids with Leah like a girl, _I point out.

_And that's a __bad__ thing?_ she questions.

_Yeah!_ I shout, _I mean, no! I mean, ugh. I'm supposed to be a __guy__. And besides, if I have to be all girly, why can't I be a normal girl?_ I question.

_What are you talking about?_

_My inner girl is a __stalker__,_ I deadpan. _Out of all the types of girls in the world, my inner girl had to be a creepy stalker with marital fantasies._

_I'm going to be nice and ignore that jab,_ she tells me seriously.

_Oh thanks so much_, I comment sarcastically.

Ignoring me, Jacobina asks excitedly, _You do realize what this means don't you?_

_You might ignore me altogether and let me be a guy?_ I ask hopefully.

_Ha! No, _she scoffs before turning 'serious.' _You have no idea… It's sad, really. Let me explain: when a girl rants and tells you all her problems, she's letting you know how she's feeling. Which is __good__._

The guy in me (yeah, who knew he was still there) just shrugs, confused, _Huh?_

_Oh my god, do I have to spell it out for you!_ Jacobina yells.

_Pretty much._

_She is opening up to you! She cares enough to let you know what she's doing! How she's feeling! For the love of god, she's letting you in!_ Jacobina shrieks.

She's letting me in? She cares?

Maybe I'm not as fucked as I thought I was.

I brighten at this thought and then I remember: we're having dinner together. Me, Leah, Billy, Sue, Charlie, and Seth.

I spoke too soon.

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything.**

**Flyaway Dove, an awesome beta. Big hugs.**

**Big thanks to all who reviewed. Do that again ;)**

**Pepe: root of **_**all**_** evil? I am **_**very, **__**very**_** pleased.**

**KKJ: her name isn't Marianna, but the thought was there ;) the creepy girl now has a name :)**

**Okay, so my internet connection has been pretty sketch the past few days seeing as I am not at home but in VIVA LAS VEGAS! Partying it up with the fam, but I am flying home tomorrow so if this chappie doesn't go through tonight, then it will tomorrow when I get home. **

**Happy Holidays (aka: Hanukkah, Christmas, Festivus, ****Kwanzaa, and for all those like me, Grinchmas) to all and a great New Year!**

**Alright, must get packing and find all the hotel pens I… "found."**

**Lu**


	6. Chapter 6

_Progress_

Not wanting to hear Jacobina anymore, I dart into the forest and strip down to phase. I tie my jeans and shirt to my leg and barely notice the change from walking on two legs to running on four.

Feeling my muscles expand and contract with phasing, I feel at home. It has always been easier for me to deal with my emotions and thoughts in wolf-form. There's just something about being alone and with nature that just completely clears your mind of all thought…

'_Baby Hugs Bear, Baby Tugs Bear, Bedtime Bear, Birthday Bear, Cheer Bear, Champ Bear, Daydream Bear,'_ I hear Quil recite.

Oh great, I'm not alone. How _nice._

'_Forest Friend Bear, Friend Bear, Funshine Bear, Good – oh, hey Jake,'_ he greets. _'I thought Seth was supposed to take over tonight?'_

I nod mentally. _'He is. He'll relieve you at around seven tonight.'_

'_Cool. I'm meeting Claire for a bedtime story tonight,' _he comments.

Resisting the urge to roll my eyes, I pick up my pace. I mean why oh why do all imprint couples have to be with each other all the time? Can't they just go a day without even _thinking_ of them? It's not like I think about how Leah's doing all the time, or if she misses me, or if she really doesn't want me to come over for dinner tonight because she didn't seem too happy about Sue inviting Dad and I.

What was I saying?

'_Not thinking about Leah constantly. Good Luck Bear, Grumpy Bear…'_ Quil supplies.

'_Oh, right.'_

We're running in silence for a while and soon I'm lost in the feel of running. The rush of adrenaline, the feeling of the wind whipping through my fur... I free my mind and just concentrate on the smell of the pine trees, the feel of the dirt underneath my paws, the colors of the trees around me…everything around me except—nope. Not even going to finish that thought.

Look at the trees. See, the color of the oak's leaves? Very nice.

Although, I _was _kicked out of the house. _She_ kicked me out. I thought she was letting me in…

Stop it! Listen to the wind, to the crunching of leaves beneath your paws, to your breaths, to your heartbeat. _Ba-bump. Ba-bump. Ba-bump._

That's right, listen to your heartbeat, to the wind, listen to anything but your own thoughts because then your mind will start to wander. It will wander all the way to the back of your mind to that place where a certain crazy stalker girl is lurking reminding you of why you're _not_ supposed to be thinking and obsessing over.

But she said she'd _call_ me.

Listen to Quil's thoughts, eh? Listen to Quil and stop thinking.

'_Grams Bear__, __Harmony Bear__, __Love-a-Lot Bear, then there is the Perfect & Polite Panda__,'_ Quil lists.

What the hell is he thinking about? Bears? Does he mean the Care Bears?

'_Uh, Quil?'_

'_Yeah?'_ Quil asks, distracted from trying to remember all of the Bears. _'__Sea Friend Bear__, __Secret Bear__, __Share Bear, and__Surprise Bear__.'_

Feeling the need to scratch my head, I settle for tilting my head to the side and letting Quil feel my curiosity when I ask, _'What the hell are you doing?'_

'_Tenderheart Bear, and Take Care Bear,'_ he lists. _'Oh, that?'_

I mentally nod my head. 'Yeah, why are you listing so many Bears?'

'_Because Claire-Bear is starting to get into the Bears and I need to brush up on them so that I can understand what she's talking about and participate,'_ Quil states as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

'_Ah, I gotcha.'_

'_Mhm. True Heart Bear, Wish Bear…'_ he trails off.

I keep running and ignore Quil's new game called "Match the name to the Bear," and decide to head home. I'm really not distracting myself from "She Who Must Not Be Named or Thought of" and I need to tell Dad that Sue's going to feed the both of us tonight and to put the take-out menus away. Besides, a few hours of begging my Dad to not embarrass me or mention Leah and mine's "relationship" during dinner would be a major plus as well.

Phasing, I throw my jeans and shirt on and walk inside. I'm about to tell Dad about the invitation to a Clearwater family dinner (plus Charlie) when I'm interrupted by the sound of his laughter. Curious about why exactly he's laughing, I follow the sound of his laughter all the way to the kitchen. There he is: sitting in his chair right next to the phone, cradling it between his ear and shoulder, flipping through the mail.

"Ha-ha! I know, he _would _do that. Mhm, mhm, really? _No!_ Seriously? Ha-ha, so true." He finally notices me and nods a hello. "Yeah, uh, I'm going to have to call you back. Yeah, he just stepped in. Okay, I'll tell him. Yeah, yeah, you too. Bye."

I just stare at him in wonder as he hangs up the phone.

What the hell was that? Laughing? Joking? He hasn't done that since his gossiping days with Harry and Charlie and the day when they discovered the magic that is three-way calling. "Who were you talking to?" I ask.

"Oh, I was just talking to—" he stops mid sentence and stares at me. "What the hell are you wearing, Jake?"

I looks down at myself I give him a confused look. "What?" For once, I look good, put together even. I look like a normal guy actually wearing clothes. What's the problem in that?

He sends me a dubious glance. "You are wearing _pants_. Not just pants, but pants that actually go down to your feet. Not to mention an actual shirt that covers you." He gives me a surprised look before a knowing look crosses his face as he asks, "Where were you?"

I let out a strangled cough before shrugging. "I dunno."

"Jacob," he says in a teasing tone, "You wouldn't happen to have had a _date_ today, did you?"

I try and fail to hold back a groan. I absolutely hate the fact that my Dad knows, (Well at least is aware of certain aspects, I mean ew how gross would it be if he knew about Leah and my sex life?), about me and Leah. More specifically about my hidden feelings for Leah. The man just won't shut up about it! Whenever I go out he asks if Leah is going with me, or if I'm going over to her place. When I am going out with Leah (which isn't a rare occasion) he asks me if I'm going to tell her how I feel, or ask her to be my girlfriend, or, and this question always sends me running, if I'm going to get up off my ass and propose to the girl because he wants to have grandchildren before he croaks. His words, not mine.

"Why are you doing this to me?" I groan.

"Because I'm your father," he states plainly. He gives me a look before announcing, "Oh, and we are going to Sue's for dinner. It should be _fun._ You've been over there with Leah for months, eating them out of house and home I'm sure; at least this time we're invited."

"You enjoy torturing me, don't you?" I ask, already knowing the answer. He gives me a smile and I know what he's saying: yes, yes he does.

Suddenly, he looks at me seriously before half-asking, half-stating, "You didn't tell her, did you?"

Not looking at him, I shrug.

"You were with her this afternoon, weren't you?" he nods towards my clothing.

Again, I shrug, trying to avoid the subject.

He sighs, "You're not going to tell me anything are you?"

I give him a blank stare before he sighs, rolling out of the room. "You should tell her soon. She'd be a great daughter-in-law," he calls from the living room.

I stomp out of the kitchen and pass the living room when he calls, "Oh, and Leah called for you. Said something about a 'pack meeting' soon?" I can freaking _hear_ the smile in his voice. He knows that I want to call her back immediately.

My hand twitches at the thought of calling Leah. Smug bastard might just get what he wants.

I hate him for it.

Stomping upstairs, I mumble something about taking a shower.

_You __should__ tell her soon_, Jacobina nags.

Oh great, she's back.

_Seriously_, she presses, _you should tell her_. _Talk to her about it. She obviously feels something for you._

Great, my Dad is telling me to tell her, Quil's suggested I say something, and now Jacobina is pestering me. I'm getting it from all fucking sides. And each fucking side does not know how it feels to be in love with someone who hates anything resembling romance.

Grabbing a towel I shuffle over to the bathroom and to take a shower, (as per Leah's request), and hear Dad laughing about me 'getting all gussied up for his girlfriend' as he turns on the TV. I stomp even louder, letting him know that I heard him before I slam the bathroom door.

Sighing, I rake my hands through my hair and think. Right now, I need to make a game plan for dinner. I need to keep Dad and Leah away from one another. More specifically, I need to keep Dad distracted and quiet. He can't have the opportunity to be alone with Leah, because he will talk to her about us and not only embarrass me, but completely ruin the delicate relationship we have.

Constructing a plan of attack, (sic Dad on Charlie and make sure that the topic of conversation stays on something like fishing, or sports, or fishing as a sport), I shrug off my clothes and get into the hot shower and let the water pound down on my back. The feel of the steady rush of water helps to calm me down. I can do this. I can go over and have dinner with Dad, Seth, Sue, Charlie and Leah. It's not a big deal. I can distract Dad with Charlie. I can avoid any awkwardness with Leah by hanging out with Seth. Yeah, I can do this.

After scrubbing the combined scent of Leah, myself, and sex, I dry myself off. Securing the towel around my waist, I walk over to my room. Shutting the door, I block out the loud sounds from the TV and Dad's snoring, focusing on the night ahead. Then I remember another problem: what the hell am I going to wear?

Dad noticed how different I looked when I came home from Leah's this afternoon; if Leah doesn't notice my change in wardrobe, my Dad, Sue, Seth, and Charlie are all bound to.

I look at my very old, almost-out-of-commission alarm clock and see that I have two hours until we need to be at Leah's.

Damn. I don't have that much time.

_And you call me a girl_, Jacobina huffs.

Running around my room, I find all my clean clothes and lay them out on my bed. My selection is slim: an old red polo, a grey t-shirt, a stained white t-shirt, a ripped black t-shirt, or a small, green, wrinkly t-shirt.

What a selection.

_You should be wilder_, Jacobina suggests. _You're no fun at all, Jake. Wear something like you did today. Spice it up! Look attractive! Make her want you as much as you want her!_

_Yeah, thanks for the input, but I think I'm doing just fine on my own, thanks,_ I tell her. God I really don't need this right now.

Picking up a regular grey t-shirt and old jeans, I hurry to dress, trying to not make this dinner into a big deal. I don't need to "spice things up" or anything. Leah wants me just the way I am.

_A clean shirt and a swipe of deodorant go a long way_, Jacobina pipes up. _Hey, just saying that maybe if you cleaned up she might see you differently. She might see you as a mature, put together, responsible, sexy guy._

_Clothes can do that?_

_Yeah._

I look down at my wrinkled clothes and decide that changing might be a good idea. God, Rachel and Rebecca have poisoned my mind over the years. I'm worrying about _clothes!_

After running around my room looking for something to wear while not panicking, not fighting with Jacobina, and not analyzing Leah's actions from earlier today, I'm ready.

Just as I'm about to head downstairs, I hear the phone ringing. I know exactly who it is. Running over to the phone downstairs, I'm met with a familiar voice.

"I'm bored," Leah sighs over the phone.

Ignoring how nice it is to hear her on the phone just talking to me, I look at the clock on the microwave and notice that Dad and I have half an hour to get to Leah's place for dinner. Ten of these minutes will be used to get Dad settled into the Rabbit, (seven of these minutes will be of Dad insisting that he can "get in the damn car by myself, thank you very much" before I get impatient and buckle him in myself), six and a half to drive over there, another eight or so minutes to get Dad out of the car and into the house, (again, he's a stubborn ass who'll insist on being "independent" and won't let me get him out of the car). So really, I only have around four minutes until I need to go. Not to mention that I'm a tad antsy about tonight.

"Hello to you too," I tell her sarcastically.

Okay, maybe more than a tad antsy.

"No, seriously, I am. Mom is making do all this crap as she panics about 'Charlie is coming over and, oh my goodness _where_ are the placemats? Leah! Le-ah!'" she imitates Sue perfectly. "It's just so dull. At least you're coming over," she sighs in relief, "I don't know how long I can take this."

_Yay! Yay! She likes you coming over! She likes spending time with you! Leah wants you in her life! Yay!_ Jacobina claps wildly.

I try to ignore Jacobina and the thrill that shoots through me at Leah's words, and try to explain that we need to be careful, especially around my Dad. "Yeah, about dinner," I start.

"Shit," Leah hisses, "Oh shit, shit, shit!"

"Lee?"

There's a pause on the other line before I hear Leah whisper, "Mom's coming, I think she found my hiding spot."

I stifle a laugh. "You're hiding?"

I hear someone call "Leah!" in background before Leah's dry reply: "Wouldn't you hide from a crazed Sue Clearwater?"

"Ha, true. Where are you hiding anyways?"

There's a long pause on the other line. I wonder if Sue found Leah or if she just hung up, before I hear her mumble, "The laundry room."

I can't help the smile and the swell of pride and freaking happiness that rushes through me at her words.

Jacobina has fainted, overwhelmed with delight.

Before I can even form a response, the phone is wrenched from my hands. "You're going to see him in a couple minutes for dinner, so Jake'll talk to you then," Dad announces before he hangs up the phone.

"C'mon, we gotta go if we're going to be on time to your girlfriend's dinner," he smirks as he rolls out of the room.

Grumbling about having to live with an irritable old man, I follow and help him into the Rabbit, a huge grin stretching my face the entire time.

Leah Clearwater as my girlfriend? I could get used to hearing that.

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything.**

**Flyaway Dove, an awesome beta who (I don't know how) puts up with me. Big hugs.**

**Well, there are now over 40 of you with this on Alert. Thanks a bunch guys! And I have to say, if all of you review, I might just write another chapter for "I Hate Weddings" before of updating "For Those Who Enjoy Gravity"**

**Incentive? I think so.**

**Yes, I'm greedy, but your support helps me write. **

**So review!!!!!**

**DFTBA! (Don't Forget To Be Awesome!) :) **

**AND HAPPY NEW YEARS!!!!! WOOT!**

**Lu**


	7. Chapter 7

_Feel It_

_The Mocking of a Themed Invitation_

The drive over has been really quiet. Oddly quiet. It's creeping me out.

Dad's just sitting there, humming nothing in particular, staring out the windshield, not really saying anything…actually letting me have space.

What the hell!?

This isn't like him. He doesn't just let me sit and think. He enjoys pestering me and talking my ear off before I lose my patience and do whatever he wanted me to do in the first place just to get him to shut up. His silence is freaking me out.

But am I going to break the silence, no matter how creepy it is? No.

So I just sit here for the longest six and a half minutes of my life, contemplating what's going to happen at dinner.

When we finally get to Leah's, I kill the engine and try and wrap my head around what's going to happen tonight.

Dad just sits there, staring at the house before he looks at me with a patented Black smirk on his face. "Are we just going to sit outside and smell the food or are you going to stop hyperventilating and get your old man out of the car and into the house?" he drawls as his smirk widens. He thinks he's funny, he thinks _this_ is funny.

Stupid old man.

Instead of getting mad and yelling at him, or getting frustrated, I practically shit my pants and grip the steering wheel even tighter. What the hell am I doing? Why did I think that having dinner with our parents would be a good idea, a "step forward"? In reality, it's not, and it's so not worth my sanity. Still, I don't outwardly freak out or cry. Nope, I just give Dad a nod as I mutter, "Sure, sure," still not making a move to getting out of the car.

He stares out the window as he says, "It's okay to be nervous."

I lock eyes with the attractive oak tree on the right when I respond, "I'm not nervous."

_Yeah, and that high-pitched voice just screams calm, cool, and collected, Jake_, Jacobina scoffs.

He continues as if I hadn't said anything, "She's older, beautiful…Basically better than any other girl you've ever been interested in."

I nod, agreeing with him. Leah is the best girl I've ever obsessed over, (Yes, I am admitting that I obsess over girls. It's just the guy I am. When I fall for someone, I fall hard and then just hang on to them like fat kid holding onto a plate of cookies). Bella was infatuated with Let's-wait-until-we're-married-to-have-Sex Ed, so she was a hopeless case for the 'Fall in love with Jacob' plan; none of the girls in school could even make it on my radar let alone stay there, and everyone in Forks was just plain crazy. I mean crazier than some of the people on the rez, and we have people who can just explode into giant furballs.

_Plus none of them come even close to making you feel what you feel for Leah_, Jacobina adds. I have to agree. With Bella it was all about the familiarity of friendship and the longing to explore, to expand the relationship. To feel something new with someone I already knew and loved (platonically). Then that went to shit when she lead me on and made me believe that we could be Mr. and Mrs. Bella and Jacob Black when Let's-wait-until-we're-married-to-have-Sex Ed abandoned her and then came back because he _just couldn't "live" without her._

I'm interrupted by Dad adding flippantly, "She'd give me good grandbabies."

I try to breathe, but am too busy choking on air. Babies? Seriously? She doesn't even want to hold my hand in public; I doubt that she'll want to pop out kids with me (If she can, which I believe she can. Hey, if we guys are still pumped with sperm after phasing, she must have some super eggs just lying around down there, too).

He pats me on the back and barks, "Breathe. You're not even inside yet."

I send him a glare and try to calm my nerves. Turning to look at him again, I tell him, "Listen, Leah and I don't want anyone to know about us." I hastily add, "yet," when dad raises his eyebrows.

"We just want to keep this quiet before we're ready to tell people about, uh, us," I spit out. He stares blankly at me. Like an idiot, I feel compelled to continue, "Because we just want to be sure that we're in a good place before other people start analyzing and cooing at us."

Dad just gives me a blank stare before he nods his head. "Sure, sure." He sends me a grin before adding, "Mum's the word."

For some reason, I don't think he's going to keep quiet about this.

Raking my hands through my hair, I decide that I'll just have to be in the same room as him throughout the dinner and monitor his conversations like officers do to prisoners. Letting out a sigh, I get out of the car and help Dad out and into his wheelchair. Ignoring his protests, I push him up the driveway and onto the porch.

I pause, again wondering if I should just knock, barge in, or knock and walk in, calling out "We're here!" Before I can decide, Dad has already opened the door and wheeled himself inside, asking when dinner will be ready because he's, "Starved! Someone ate every single edible thing in the house while I was sleeping."

Walking inside, I ignore the jibe and grin. "I know! Doesn't Paul have his own house?"

Dad turns his chair and shakes his head, before greeting Charlie in the living room. I walk into the kitchen and greet Sue before I go off to find…Seth. I will go and find Seth.

I run up the stairs and bypass She Who Must Not Be Named or Thought of's room, ignoring Jacobina's requests to "Drop by and say 'hi,'" and head to Seth's room. Leaning on the door jam, I ask, "So, how bad was it this afternoon?"

Looking up from his magazine, Seth smiles before a look of horror crosses his face. "Hey, yeah this afternoon was bad. Mom and Leah got into a fight, something about placemats I think, and you know how they get." He rolls his eyes. "So, they yelled, threw things, glared, used some great one liners, and then yelled some more before Leah got fed up and locked herself in her room."

"She hasn't come out yet?" I ask, trying not to sound as concerned as I am.

Seth waves a hand in nonchalance. "Nah, it's best to just let her cool off, anyways. You know her temper." He grins at me and I smirk at him. God, how many times have I pissed off Leah? Before and after our little arrangement? Yeah, best to let her cool off.

"Want to play some X-Box while we wait?" Seth asks, already heading downstairs, knowing my answer.

We sit down in front of the TV and play X-Box while Dad, Charlie, and Sue all talk in the kitchen until dinner is ready. I was half playing X-Box, and half listening to Dad whisper and giggle with Charlie about gossip on the rez (thankfully all of the rumors were not about things I shouldn't be thinking about right now), before Sue calls that dinner's ready.

Seth and I abandon our game, (he was winning so I may have forgotten to hit 'save' before we raced to the kitchen), and sit. We are about to pile our plates high with all of the food laid out on the table when Sue stops us. "Put your forks down, boys! Not everyone is at the table, and you know the rule. Humans first."

Ducking my head, I mumble, "Sorry Sue."

She nods her head and walks over to the stairs and yells for Leah to come down for dinner. When she doesn't come down, Sue Mom-stomps (Mom-stomp: an annoying walk that sounds like stomping but looks like a determined walk that only Moms know how to do) up the stairs and bangs on Leah's door. She starts to yell and bang on the door, trying to get Leah out, before Leah starts yelling that she doesn't want to have a 'family dinner with her mother's new boy toy' anymore.

Downstairs, we're all pretending not to listen to the fight, but we are. Charlie squirms in his seat whenever Leah yells, Dad smiles whenever Leah or Sue yell, Seth sighs and looks at the food longingly, and I stare in the direction of Leah's room, trying to soothe Leah telepathically.

"Fine!" Leah yells before storming out of her room into the kitchen, and plopping down right next to Charlie.

She turns to him and gives him a wry smile, which Charlie, being the embarrassed and awkward guy he is, does not return. Smiling, Leah looks at everyone at the table. Sue just waltzes in like nothing happened, taking her seat at the head of the table before she starts serving herself.

I sit between Seth and Dad. Leah's sitting beside Sue and Charlie, right across from me. There have to be at least twelve different dishes on the table right now, each more appetizing than the next, but I could care less. Right now, it isn't the food that holds my attention, it's Leah.

Dinner is the last thing on my mind right now.

As Sue, Charlie, Dad, and Seth try to cut the tension by making idle chitchat, I'm busy staring at Leah. She looks beautiful with her eyes sparkling from a fight (which I'm sure she won), cheeks flushed, and a smile that made me want to support her every endeavor. She's not just beautiful, but hot, too.

Her breasts strain against her tight tank top; her long, lean legs are encased in tight jeans, outlining every curve of her body. She looks amazing.

Dad clears his throat and sends me a pointed look. Shaking my head, I try to remove any thoughts of Leah and focus on dinner. Ha, and I thought Dad would spill the beans. Me staring at Leah like I just found My Precious probably isn't being stealthy.

Oops.

Concentrating on everything other than Leah, I start to chat with Sue. Apparently Maria wanted her help with some samplers and rough sketch designs of how she wants the seating for the reception to be. Soon, she's into a full-blown monologue about color schemes and flower arrangement ideas. I just nod and smile, shoveling food into my mouth while Dad is joking with Seth and Leah about the benefits of having Chief Charlie Swan as a step-dad since he knows how Leah likes to drive above the speed limit.

I start to tune Sue out and concentrate on my food when I hear her say, "Oh, and the colors she picked for the invitation are just wonderful! And-"

Invitations?

Swallowing a mouthful, I check to see if I heard right, "Pardon?"

Sue looks at me and smiles. "Yes, invitations. Embry and Maria have already set a date, but now we have the times and know where the ceremony is going to be held."

"We got ours at the house yesterday and RSVP-ed," Charlie smiles at Sue.

She nods, "Maria wanted to send out all of the invitations to family members that weren't in La Push first so that they would have enough time to respond."

Soon, everyone is talking about the upcoming wedding and I really just want to eat dinner in peace. Focusing on my food, I start to block out the chatter about Embry's wedding, which is probably going to be the last wedding for a while.

I feel my stomach flip at that realization.

Fuck.

Okay, pull yourself together Jake. Really, it's not so bad. Leah wants to talk to you and hang out, right? She hasn't done that before. Maybe that will continue after Embry and Maria's- oh hello.

I feel a warm foot rub up and down the inside of my leg before it creeps further up. What the hell. I stare at Leah who avoids my gaze and focuses on her food, a sly smile on her face.

Fine, two can play this game. Stretching my legs underneath the cramped table, I start to stroke Leah's leg from ankle to knee, going higher every time. Watching her face, I see as her look goes from smug to shock to determination as her foot rubs higher and higher each time.

Fighting the urge to laugh, and moan, I realize that we're playing footsie underneath the table right next to our parents.

Not looking at each other, we both start to get creative with our 'attacks'. We talk to everyone at the table, trying to be inconspicuous with huge smiles on our faces.

After another very creative attack, Seth slams his hands down on the dinner table and yells, "Whoever is playing footsie with me, stop now!"

Leah and I freeze. Shit I thought that was her foot, and she thought that was mine. Oh crap, oh crap, crap, crap, crap. Seth, Sue and Charlie are going to know now. All because of a stupid game of footsie. I look at Leah and see my panic reflected in her. Oh good, she's shitting her pants too.

Just as I'm about to apologize to Seth and tell him I have Athlete's foot and it's really itching, Sue shrugs and says, "Sorry Seth, I thought you were Charlie."

Charlie turns bright red and starts to cough and mumble incoherently. Seth is staring at Sue, wide-eyed, his mouth hanging open, before he snaps and starts to complain, "Oh, ew! Ugh! Mom! Gross! I mean, ew! Ew! I _eat_ here!"

Dad starts to laugh and Sue smiles, patting Seth on the back in an attempt to soothe him. Leah relaxes and starts to tease Charlie. Dad chuckles and joins Leah and tries to see how embarrassed he can make Charlie, comparing his blush to Bella's.

Letting out a sigh of relief, I get back to dinner and lock eyes with Sue. Smirking, she gives me a wink and mouths, "You're welcome," before saving Charlie from Dad and Leah's teasing.

Great, more people know.

I knew I shouldn't have played X-Box with Seth.

Dinner ends, and Seth leaves for patrol (I know, how convenient) leaving me alone with Leah; Charlie and Dad want to make a date for fishing and Sue is busy cleaning the kitchen.

Leah announces that we'll be in her room and walks up the stairs, pulling me along the way. As soon as we cross the threshold, she shuts the door and smiles. "Oh my god, dinner was hilarious."

I stare at her, shocked. Was she at the same dinner I was? I seem to recall a certain mother bailing us out of a sticky situation, meaning that she must freaking know what's going on. "Did you see Seth's face? Ha! Priceless!" She claps.

"I wish I had a camera so that I could see his horrified face whenever I wanted," she says wistfully.

She lies down on her bed and continues her 'OMG if only I had a camera, the satisfaction would be endless' rant and I sit on her bed and joke with her before I get too tired and just lie down.

We lie down on her bed, side by side, and talk. Jacobina is there in the corner of my mind squealing in excitement. _'She wants to talk! Just talk! She wants to let you in, to be more than just a fuck buddy! YOU ARE DOING SO WELL!' _while Leah talks about the invitation.

"I wonder if this wedding will be themed." She stares at Charlie and Sue's invitation before looking up at me.

We lock eyes and I can't control myself, I burst out laughing. I remember what Leah had to wear at Rachel and Paul's wedding. She wore this pink dress to go with the pink… everything. It looked like Barbie teamed up with the Pink Panther and just threw up pink everywhere.

_Everywhere._

Leah starts to laugh and we start talking about the past weddings and how ridiculous they are, (Emily and Sam's Hawaiian Beach theme on the not warm First beach).

Between laughing about Kim and Jared's wedding and recalling Sue and Charlie's awkward wedding vows, I realize the importance of curves. Looking at Leah lying on the bed next to me, I notice the hundreds of places where girls' bodies just ease from one place to another. How they gently curve and connect from the gentle arc of the foot to the ankle easing into the calf, from calf to thigh to hip, from hip to the indent approaching the waist, from waist to the gentle swell of the breasts, from breasts to the slope of the neck. Not to mention the arch from back to butt, the smooth connection of shoulder to neck. All of them. All of the curves that make a woman.

I've noticed them before on girls, but never like this, never on Leah. And now…now I can't stop staring.

Leah looks at me with a smile on her face before she leans in and kisses me. It starts off as a simple peck but, as usual, things het carried away. The second our lips meet, I just can't stop myself. I roll Leah on to her back without breaking our kiss. She intertwines her hands in my hair and tugs me closer to her body. My hands wander the length of her torso.

We just lay there, content with the lazy exploration of each other's mouths, until we hear my Dad calling me.

"Jake! Stop harassing Leah and drive your old man home!"

Leah pulls away from me with a wide grin on her face. "Guess you gotta go."

Bumping noses with her I agree, regretfully, "Yeah."

I roll off of Leah and instantly miss her body pressed against mine. We both get off the bed and head downstairs where Dad is tapping his fingers incessantly.

"Finally!" he moans.

Leah and I stand awkwardly at the front door. She looks at me before abruptly looking away. Well, this is awkward.

Do I kiss her goodnight, say "I'll see you around," "I'll call you," nod, hug, or what? We're not "official" boyfriend and girlfriend so I guess I can't kiss her. "I'll see you around" is just stupid. Of course I'll "see her around"; she's my Beta! And-

I'm interrupted by a kiss on the cheek and a hug from Leah. Getting over my initial shock, I sink into the hug, bringing Leah closer to me and nuzzling her neck. Her hug lingers, and I swear that she's inhaling my scent, just like I'm doing.

Breaking the hug, Leah smiles up at me and says that we'll talk later before going back up to her room. I stare after her and am broken out of my trance when Dad calls "Bye Sue! Bye Charlie! Bye Leah!" before wheeling himself out of the house and onto the porch.

I get Dad into the truck and drive all the way home with a smile on my face. When we get home, I bring Dad inside and am ready to go upstairs and just bask in the success of this evening in my room.

Dad turns on the TV and says, "I was watching Leah tonight at dinner."

I stop walking and peer into the living room. "She was looking at you all throughout dinner, you know. And smiling," he continues. "She was also watching you from her bedroom window when you were helping me into the car."

He turns his head and looks at me. "She may not know it, but that feeling you have for her, she feels it for you, too."

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything.**

**Flyaway Dove, an awesome beta. Big hugs.**

**Big thanks to all who reviewed.**

**You know, you leave Twitter for one night to study for Calculus and then you find out that you, Oz, and Reijilie are nominated in the Howling Wolf Awards (pauses to freak out and wave at Oz and Rei) which is really cool (freaks out again).**

**So, the site is here: **

**http://thehowlingwolfawards(dot)webs(dot)com/voting(dot)htm**

**so vote for our wolf girls!!!!**

**Oh, and then FF has it's own poll award thingy too that dontcallmeLeeLee set up! Nominations end today here: **

**http://forum****(dot)fanfiction(dot)net/topic/66481/20624122/1**

**So go NOM NOM NOM NOMINATE YOUR FAVES!**

**Lu**


	8. Chapter 8

_Raise some Hell_

"Mmm, Leah."

I snuggle up behind her and bring her closer to my body. She offers no resistance and presses herself closer to me. I start to nuzzle her neck, inhaling her scent, and try to prolong the moment. Tightening my arms, I try to close the tiny space that's between our bodies. I moan when Leah's ass presses closer to my groin and try to keep her this close to me for as long as possible.

Soon, I feel Leah start to shrink away. I barely feel her warm body in my arms, locked in a tight embrace. Now I feel nothing but a squishy, cool material, instead of the warm, hard, yet so soft, planes of Leah's body.

Oh fuck.

Regretfully, I crack open an eye and glance at the person I'm snuggling. My pillow.

Not. Fucking. _Again_.

Shoving my head into my pillow, I try to clear my head of the image of a naked Leah cuddling up to me after a night of making love in which she continuously professed her undying love for me. Feeling myself grow, I can't help but think that not thinking about my dream isn't working. When I close my eyes, all I can see is Leah's naked form wrapped around me, hear her panting my name, feel her nails raking down my back, her grip on me tightening as her desperation for me grows.

It's the only thing running through my mind and my gigantic morning wood is proof enough.

God, this is getting way out of hand. This has got to be at least the sixth time I've woken up spooning my pillow, imagining that I'm with Leah, ready for another round of sex. Sure, I'm a guy and I'm used to waking up with morning wood, or having to deal with the mess left by wet dreams, but this is just wrong. Waking up spooning and stroking my pillow and imaging that it's my not-really-my-girlfriend is just wrong. I never pictured Bella lying with me in bed glowing from hours of making love. Bella isn't the one I picture myself picking baby names with. Bella isn't the girl whose name has been on my lips every morning when I wake. She isn't the woman that I want to hold in my arms when I go to bed, or the one I want to wake up next to and kiss good morning, morning breath and all. I picture doing all of these things with Leah; unattainable, unromantic, anti-marriage and anti-commitment Leah. She is the woman about which I have to dream.

For weeks.

Rolling on to my back, I give up trying to suffocate myself with my pillow and climb out of bed, ready for a shower. Maybe if I scrub myself hard enough, I can just wash my desire for Leah away.

Yeah, that's likely.

Grabbing my towel off of the back of my bedroom door, I head to the bathroom, ready to rid myself of my growing problem. It's been a week since the family-fun that was the dinner at which Dad said that Leah feels something for me too, (let's give Jacobina a moment to jump up and down to freak out about how "Absolutely amazing and great this is" again), and everything has been pretty normal. I go out for patrol, I come home, I eat, I hang out with the pack, email Bella (who is visiting the Denali clan in Alaska), and Ness (who is visiting Nahuel's family in the Amazon), eat again, sleep, and run errands for Dad whenever he asks.

All in all, nothing has changed, which is to be expected; it's La Push so nothing ever changes.

So let me be more specific: things with Leah have not changed. At all. Yes, it _is _irritating me to no end since Dad said that she 'feels it too.'

Trying to ignore my growing frustration about Leah and her feelings, I step into the shower and go to relieve my _other_ frustration about Leah.

I turn the hot water as high as it will go and try to clear my mind of everything. With the hot water cascading down my back, I start to relax and let my mind pick up where I left off in my room. Grabbing my cock, I start stroking it, imagining that my hands are Leah's and that she's the one stroking me, and that I'm feeling her skin sliding against me.

Soon, my hand is shooting up and down my cock and the visuals in my mind are getting more vivid. Leah's here with me in the shower. Her hand is trailing down my chest, past the V of my hipbones, stopping at my aching cock. She looks up at me through her lashes, giving me a sinful smirk before her lips follow the path that her hand made just a few moments ago.

I imagine Leah kneeling in front of me, water droplets from the shower rolling down her curves, looking up at me with lust filled eyes before she takes me in her mouth, swirling her tongue and making my eyes roll to the back of my head. Suddenly, she stops and begins to use her hand again. She crawls up my body, planting kisses along the way, and starts to rub herself against me.

Pumping myself faster, I imagine how hot, wet, and soft her body is against mine. How her bare chest would feel against mine, the feeling of her small hand wrapped around me, gripping me, pumping me.

My fantasy of Leah is intensifying and I know that in a few good pumps, I'm going to burst. Groaning, I throw my head back and picture Leah's slick body pressed against mine, her hot mouth whispering in my ear, encouraging me to come.

Envisioning Leah's body grinding, rubbing against mine as she continues to stroke me, I start to feel the all too familiar tightening in my gut before I come. Stifling my groans, I continue to stroke myself until I grow soft.

I clean myself off and finish the rest of my shower before digging through my clothes in my room and throwing on a pair of cutoffs. Not really having anything planned for today, I don't really mind that the one t-shirt that I can find is stained and ripped at the bottom and smells.

Going downstairs, I make my way to the kitchen, ready for another day of doing nothing. Making myself a bowl of cereal, I try to think of ways that I could entertain myself today, maybe actually do something productive. Halfway through my bowl of Count Chocula, I decide that today I will work on the Rabbit, maybe fix the air conditioning and improve the stereo system.

Deciding that after breakfast I will go and work in the garage for the day, I finish my cereal, put the bowl in the sink, and walk into the living room to see if Dad wants anything before I go to work.

"This will work. He won't see it coming," Dad smiles into the receiver.

I stop and watch him talk on the phone, curious about what exactly he's talking about.

"Mhm, they're perfect together."

What the hell? Is he talking about me and Leah? And with who?

"With Poland and France together, I'm sure we can take him."

Okay, now I'm totally lost. Walking into the room, I take a closer look at him. He has the phone cradled between his ear and shoulder, concentrating on a book in front of him. After flipping the pages a couple of times, he shuts the book and I'm able to read the title.

"_Risk: Total Diplomacy- Risk Strategies."_

Flipping back to a page, Dad strategizes. "So, Sue, you'll invade from the east, and I'll attack from the west and we'll take Czech Republic before expanding towards Hungary and Romania."

Ah, now I get it, he's planning what will happen at the next 'council meeting.'

Typical.

Ever since Emmett gave Dad that game last Christmas, he, Old Quil, Sue, and Charlie haven't been able to stop playing. At first they were pretty bad at it, not really understanding the rules. Then, Dad and Old Quil went to the library and found this book on _Risk_, (don't ask me how they found it, but they did. I'm pretty sure Old Quil charmed one of the old ladies that volunteers there to help him find something that would help them play the game), and that's when it took off. Dad and Old Quil read up on the rules and tips to the game and they taught Sue and Charlie. Surprisingly, Sue really took to IT, needing no more than a short tutorial on the rules of invasion in the game. Soon, all four of them were competing, seeing who could "rule the world."

After Sue won the first game, people started getting sneaky. Charlie and Old Quil formed a secret alliance, obliterating Dad's hold on Russia and Ukraine. That night Dad told me to drive to the Cullen house, where he had a long discussion of tactics and strategies with Emmett. After a while, Emmett just gave him this book that "helped him beat the crap out of Edward and his pathetic noob tactics."

So Dad took it home and highlighted techniques he thought would work, which they did. After a couple of months, he and Charlie made an alliance. A week after that, he made an alliance with Sue. Apparently, his alliance with Sue is "the real deal" while his alliance with Charlie is a backup.

Anyway, this drama has been going on for a damn long time and I'm not surprised that he's on the phone talking about invading the Czech Republic on a Friday morning.

I wait until he's off the phone to make my presence known. "Who were you talking to?"

Shrugging, he tries to be nonchalant. "Sue. Just planning another council meeting this week."

"Old Quil take Russia again?" I ask with a smirk on my lips.

Dad looks at me seriously and says, "Quil Sr. is one sneaky guy. He got Russia from right under our noses." He shouts before calming down and getting into 'game mode.' "Sue and I plan on taking Poland and the Czech Republic, before expanding and taking back Russia. We are going to beat the crap out of him. This time," he smiles, "this time, I will rule the world."

Starting to get freaked out by his enthusiasm and passion for his plans, I try and change the topic of conversation. "Sure, sure. Listen, I'm going to work on the Rabbit today, so do you need anything?"

He looks up from a highlighted page and waves me away. "No, Sue's going to come over and pick me up soon. We're going to the library to try and do some research on war strategies."

Nodding my head, I bolt out of the living room, praying that he won't ask me for my old history notes for pointers on how to defeat the Third Reich.

In the garage, I turn on the boom-box and get to work. Blasting _The White Stripes_, I get lost in my work. It's been a long time since I've had the time or the desire to work on the Rabbit. Nodding my head in time with the beat, I lose myself in the mechanics.

After a few songs, I'm really getting into the bass and the percussion, so much so that I don't notice anyone knocking on the garage door or calling my name, until suddenly someone was tapping my shoulder.

"Gah!" I shoot up and hit my head on the hood and spin around, clutching my head, trying to find the culprit.

Turning off the boom-box, I look around until I see her. With a sheepish smile she waves and mutters, "Sorry."

"S'okay," I shrug, rubbing my head as the throbbing pain starts to dull.

After staring awkwardly at each other like complete idiots, I break the silence. "So," I smile at her, "What brings you by?"

Walking around the Rabbit, she starts to fiddle with a wrench I laid out earlier. "Well," she stops walking and looks at me, "I was wondering if you wanted to come over for dinner?" She rushes the last part out like she was nervous that I would say no or that I had other plans.

Ha, like I have other plans.

Not answering quickly enough for her, she tries to reassure me. "You won't be the only one there, don't worry! The guys are going to come over too, so it won't be awkward."

Nodding my head, I don't hesitate to respond this time. "Sure, sure. Dinner sounds great." I try to smile genuinely at the thought of having dinner with the guys, but it just seems to fall short.

Smiling brightly, she tells me to come over at six before shouting out a "Thanks!" as she leaves me alone with my thoughts.

Dinner with the pack tonight, oh the joy.

Sighing, I run a hand down my face and realize that I'm going to have to shower again to be able to go to dinner looking halfway decent.

At five thirty, I put all of my tools away and sweep the garage before heading inside, peeling off my shirt and shorts on the way to the bathroom. Taking a quick shower, I throw on a pair of pants and shirt and prepare myself for the dinner in a few minutes.

Noticing that Dad hasn't come home yet, I figure that he's going to have dinner with Sue and Charlie again, and turn the porch light on as I make my way out. Climbing into the Rabbit, I drive, not really paying attention to the road. Before I notice what's going on, I've parked the car and killed the engine.

Wanting to get this dinner over with, I walk to the door quickly and ring the doorbell.

A few seconds later the door opens and to say that I'm shocked to see the person who's opening it is an understatement.

She smirks at me. "Well fuck me sideways, _now_ it's a party."

And I can't help but agree with her.

Oh, this is going to be a _fun_ night.

"Ready to raise some hell?" she asks with a grin that I can't help but mirror.

Oh, boy am I ever.

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything.**

**Flyaway Dove, an awesome beta. Big hugs.**

**So, who's the girl at the door? Who's the girl who came over to Jake's garage? Any guesses? If you do, post 'em in a review.**

**The amazing Oz, the fantastic Reijilie, and I are nominated in the Howling Wolf Awards for Best Underling and voting is now open! You can vote for your favorite three in each category (hint, hint) and it would be uber cool if one of us won.**

**For reals.**

**So, the site is here: **

**http://thehowlingwolfawards(dot)webs(dot)com/voting(dot)htm**

**so vote for our wolf girls!!!!**

**And then FF has it's own poll award thingy too that dontcallmeLeeLee set up! **

**Voting is open! I'm up for Best Seth and Best Jake Leah for "For those who Enjoy Gravity" but honestly, I just want Best Seth. C'mon, a Blackwater story winning Best Seth? Not only would that be hilarious, but that would just make all those Bella/Ed people go "Huh? Blackwater won Best Seth?"**

**So PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE VOTE! :)**

**http://forum(dot)fanfiction(dot)net/forum/CuriosityKilled_The_Cat/69076/1/0/**

**Also, I have exams, so this might be my last update for a while. I know, exams suck. But, they end next Wednesday! So, take the good with the bad, yeah? Yeah.**

**Lu**

**P.S. If anyone really cares about what I think about **_**Twilight**_** and the whole saga, I have a onesie that just explains everything I think about it, in a nice way. It's called "Reading the Lion and the Lamb."**

**AND! Aadarshinah just wrote a recruitment onesie (as per my request) titled "Fighting Words" so check that out too.**

**God, this is the longest AN of life. It's over now. I promise. Bye!**


	9. Chapter 9

_Being Named "Best Man" and "Bridesmaid"_

… _Again_

I walk inside Embry and Maria's house and smile at Leah; we both know why we're here. The wedding date is getting closer and closer and Embry and Maria have yet to say who's in the wedding party.

Thus, tonight is all about Embry and Maria wining and dining us before royally fucking us and asking (more like forcing through the obligations of being a friend) us to be a part of the wedding party. Still, this is probably going to be better than any date I've ever been on. With Embry and Maria I actually get to eat until my wolf appetite is sated and not have to pay for dinner before I'm screwed. Yay!

Yes, I am rolling my eyes.

God, we've done this what seems like a hundred times. Really, it's no surprise that Leah and I are going to have to stand up there and smile, wearing an uncomfortable suit and an ugly dress. Embry and I have been friends since forever, and Leah and Maria get along, mostly because Maria loves Leah's dry humor and Leah likes it when someone strokes her ego.

Leah roughly pushes me against the door and kisses me until we're both panting for air. Resting her forehead against mine, she glares at me. "Took you long enough. Did you know that I have been just sitting here with Dumb, Dumber, and Pedophile for over twenty minutes?" Leah says incredulously. "It's been twenty minutes of listening to those idiots speak while Maria and her idiot people were off giggling worse than Quil when someone says 'duties' and I'm ready to phase and attack something."

Stifling a chuckle at the duties/doodies comment, (Leah would be pissed if I laughed at that one), I rest my hands on her hips and try to soothe her by rubbing slow circles on it. I ask with a sigh, "Was it the pirate versus ninja argument again?"

Linking her arms around my neck, she sighs. "It's so sad that, after being in their heads for so long, I know what each of them is going to say before they say it."

Giving me a sly smile, Leah perks up a bit. "But, I know how we can make this night better."

"Really?"

Surely she won't make me defile one of my best friend's house, (the outside of the house – group meetings number one and two – don't count), while he's inside. Will she?

Bringing herself closer, Leah sends me a smirk that says, "Oh, we're going to have some fun tonight."

Does she seriously want to do this? Here? Now?

Why am I even asking these questions; of course she does. It's _Leah._

She's the kind of girl who lives life on the edge and makes you wonder "Is she messing with my head?"

And really, would I have her any other way?

"_Nope, you love her crazy ass too much,"_ Jacobina answers my rhetoric question.

"_If it was rhetoric, why bother asking me?"_ she asks.

"_I didn't ask you. I never ask you anything."_

"_Really? I seem to recall you asking me many things regarding Leah and our little situation with her feelings,"_ Jacobina smirks.

God I hate her. Especially when she's right.

"_Shut up."_

Wanting to focus on Leah and not the crazy psycho stalker girl in my head, I raise a brow in question. If we're going to defile Embry's house I'm going to need to know in advance. Seth is here and I'm sure that, along with Embry, he'd be pretty pissed if he hears, smells, or sees me and Leah doing the do somewhere in the house. So pissed that I will need to plan escape routes in advance so I know where to run out of the house if we're caught and I'm beaten.

Sure, I'm Alpha, but dude, there are just certain things for which a guy has to beat the crap out of another guy. Like using his bed for one of his many "support group meetings" with another guy's sister. While they are in the house. At a party. While everyone is downstairs.

So yeah, knowing the answer to this question is pretty vital.

Pecking me on the cheek, Leah ignores my question and grabs me by the hand, trying to drag me over to the guys. "C'mon, they're probably thinking that I killed you and drove off to Canada in your crappy car."

Not wanting to have to go and pretend to just be Alpha and Beta in front of the guys, (not to mention the problem of possible bodily harm if we do have a "group meeting" on some surface in Embry's home), I pull her back to me, locking my arms around her waist and pout. "Hey, don't insult Geraldine."

Leah looks at me like I've lost my mind.

Hey, I'm going to defend my baby no matter what. She's been through a lot. I built her from scratch and she's beautiful—magnificent, even. Sure, she may not be as sleek, or as fast, or have as nice a paint job as Leah's car, (a gift from Blondie), but Geraldine's been with me for a long time. She was with me through the Bella disaster, Paul and Rachel's imprinting, Paul and Rachel's wedding, Paul stealing all of my food while being married to Rachel and having his own house, and through this "support group" business with Leah. My car has been distracting me from the shit problems in my life for a long time and I love her for it.

"Geraldine?" Leah asks, arching an eyebrow.

I shrug. Hey, I'm a guy, it's no surprise that I'm going to name my baby. "Nice cars need love."

Smirking, Leah arches her back, pressing her chest to mine, and asks with a brow raised. "And a woman doesn't?"

I can tell by the tone of her voice that she's just teasing, and she doesn't get how I so desperately want to say "Well, since a certain woman prefers not to be loved and to keep her relationship with me in the dark because she's too stubborn and afraid of commitment to allow anyone remotely close to her, I have no idea how to love a woman properly." Seeing as that answer is a tad long and Leah would rip my head off for it, I try to shrug it off and say as casually as I can muster, "I'm not qualified to answer that."

Leah gets the double meaning I was trying to cover up and is about to say something before the guys' laughter cuts through the air. Smirking in their direction, Leah shakes her head before removing her arms from around my neck and dragging me over to the living room.

As soon as we get near, Leah realizes that she's been dragging me by my hand and drops it faster than you can say "Taha Aki" before she casually struts her way over to the loveseat, stretching her body over the full length of the seat, effectively making the two-seater into a Leah-only-seater.

"_Well that could have gone a bit better,"_ Jacobina murmurs.

"_What are you talking about?"_ I feign ignorance. I know that Leah's going to avoid me now. That little comment freaked her out and now she wants space. She wants to detach herself from me until she either a) admits that she feels the same way and wants to be with me, b) figures that the best way to acknowledge the comment and my feelings is by not acknowledging it at all and resumes our little group therapy session, or c) she misses my body and decides to ignore the comment and uses me like a dog with a chew toy.

"_Well you don't want to wind up all pathetic and alone like Sammy-boy, now do you? If you press for too much too soon, you'll wind up scaring her away and you'll end up like Sam: constantly watching her from afar, jealous of the guy who actually ends up getting some form of commitment from her, always wondering 'why not me?'"_ Jacobina says.

"_Yeah, but Sam got to date her publically," _I point out._ "He got to let people know that he was with her, that she was __his__ girlfriend and that she cared about him. I have none of that! I'm not asking FOR marriage, I just want people to know that she's my girlfriend. Is that too much to ask for?"_ I tell her.

"_At the moment, yes."_

Feeling my blood start to boil, I start to shake a little. God, I'm tired of going places and not being able to hold her hand, kiss her, hold her, or scream and shout at her for being an idiot and not giving me more.

"_Calm down. I'm not saying that you can't tell her, you'll just have to wait for the opportune moment to tell her,"_ Jacobina says in a calming tone. _"Like when she's not trapped in a house surrounded by people who are all excited to celebrate an __imprint__ wedding."_

Listening to Jacobina, I realize that she's right. If I tell Leah too soon, I'll scare her away. If I tell her too late, well, not only would she not believe me, but she'd probably just laugh in my face, find a new boy toy and leave. So, I have to wait. I have to wait for this 'opportune moment' when Leah will believe me, and in a place where she can't run away. _"Or when she's in close proximity to breakable things and sharp objects,"_ I add.

"_See, I knew you'd get it. Now go out there, greet the guys, and act normal!"_ Jacobina cheers.

Giving a quick nod, I run a hand through my hair and walk into the living room.

I greet the guys with a tight smile and try to join in their conversation, but I can't. I'm distracted by Jacobina's 'opportune moment' crap. When the hell am I supposed to talk to her about this? I mean sure, the whole idea of telling her about my feelings and about wanting more out of our 'relationship' is sound, but actually going through with this idea is more like a suicide mission. Five minutes ago was the first fucking time I've even mentioned our 'relationship' to Leah and she just fucking clams up and runs away? You have got to be kidding me. I thought we had something more than just being fuck buddies. Honestly.

Ugh, I let out a frustrated sigh and try to clear my mind of everything. For once, I'm going to listen to Jacobina and just leave things alone. I'm going to just relax, celebrate Embry and Maria's moment, and try not to be pissed that I'm going to have to wear an ugly tie, (or, god forbid, an ugly bowtie), with my uncomfortable suit and awful shoes, standing up at the altar with Embry.

"Oh my god! You can't be serious! You have guys like Davy Jones, Blackbeard, Red Beard, Captain Kidd, Calico Jack, Henry Every, and Henry Morgan ready to kill in a second, not to mention their experience in bargaining to get what they want, all on our side!" Quil shouts.

"Psh," Embry scoffs, "Guys who play with swords and compasses? They're glorified Boy Scouts with pointed sticks and a need for long field trips."

Rolling my eyes, I look at Seth and send him a glance. He rolls his eyes and shrugs as if saying "What can you do?" God, no wonder Leah was the one to answer the door; she was escaping this conversation.

"Is there something wrong with being a Boy Scout?" Quil questions, folding his arms over his chest.

And dear God, who could blame her? I'm ready to kill both of them and I've only been here for five minutes.

Embry smirks and is about to answer before Seth interrupts. "Guys, please."

Leah and I both send Seth a thankful glance. Finally, someone else in this room sees the stupidity and childishness of this conversation.

"We all know that ninjas are better than pirates no matter what. There's no use in arguing about it anymore, it's just a fact." Seth continues.

You have got to be kidding me.

I hear Leah groan and I can't help but share the sentiment. Honestly, Seth, ninjas? Please. It's pirates all the way.

"Dude, when was the last time you saw a ninja with women?" I ask Seth.

Quil smiles, "When was the last time you _saw_ a ninja?"

"Face it Seth, pirates get laid, ninjas don't. We win," I tell him with a grin.

Quil comes over to me and gives me a high-five. Seth and Embry try to argue the plusses of being a ninja, (like knowing the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or Ninja Cats- which I laughed at. We morph into giant wolves and a plus for being a ninja is knowing ninja _cats_? Yeah, right), while Seth and I argue the advantages of being a pirate.

Somewhere in the middle of our Jackie Chan versus Hector Barbossa argument, the doorbells rings and Leah shoots out of her chair to get the door. Figuring that it's just another one of Maria's girlfriends from university, I back Quil up in our 'Barbossa was immortal for 10 years and so could have kicked Jackie Chan's ass' argument. After about five minutes, I notice that Leah isn't back yet.

What could be taking her so long? She hates making chit-chat, especially when it's with other girls and all they want to talk about is, well, whatever girls talk about, so what the hell is she doing?

I tell the guys that I'm going to check on Leah and make sure that she hasn't run off somewhere and walk to the front door. There, I see Leah giggling, yes giggling, with some guy at the door. He's about 6"4', fairly well built, has a mop of curly black hair, brown eyes, and dimples. Yeah, the prick has dimples.

Leah's clutching at his shoulder, laughing her ass off and he's holding on to her waist, chuckling. I don't know who he is, but I hate him.

Clearing my throat, I try to grab their attention. Thankfully, Dimples hears me and sticks his hand out.

"Hi, I'm Ricardo." He smiles at me, showing me his two stupid dimples.

Ignoring his hand, I nod my head in greeting instead.

Leah stops laughing enough to calm down and stand up straight without the aid of Ricardo Dimples. "Sorry," she clears her throat. "Ricardo, this is Jacob. Jacob, this is Ricardo."

I grunt a hello and look at Leah. "C'mon Leah, Embry said that dinner is starting soon." I lie, wave her over to me, wrapping my arm around her waist and dragging her away from Dimples and over to the living room.

Maria comes running down the stairs as soon as we reach the living room, yelling "Ricky! You're here! You're here!"

Leah stops us just outside of the living room and places her hands on her hips. "What the hell was that?"

Shrugging, I feign ignorance, "I dunno what you're talking about."

Giving me a sharp look, she smacks my arm and mutters "Ass," before hiding a small smile and walking into the living room.

Smirking, I follow her into the living room and talk with the guys and introduce myself to Maria's girlfriends, (who came down from Maria and Embry's room when Maria ran to greet Dimples), and wait until dinner is actually ready.

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything.**

**Flyaway Dove, an awesome beta. Big hugs.**

**So, who's the guy at the door? Why is Maria so excited to see him? Guesses? Post 'em in a review! **

**There was a **_**ton**_** of reviews last chapter and I hope we can keep them up. **

**So, as you can see, Maria was the one in the garage and Leah was at the door. The only one to get **_**both**_** answers right was ****ari11990**** because she's psychic.**

**And, what makes me laugh is that apparently some of you guys think I'm funny… heh, you guys make me laugh… me… funny… you guys are too cute. I lub all yer faces. **

**As you can tell with this chapter, I've been on a Johnny Depp kick. I watched a lot of movies with him in it, **_**Pirates of the Caribbean, Finding Neverland, Chocolat, Secret Window**_**, over and over again. But now, now I am grounded. Yes, grounded. I went and gots myself into trouble. Right now I'm actually using the computer illegally while my parents are watching the Olympics. I'm banned from the internet and the TV. It's been hard, but that's the reason why I've been MIA for the past couple of days.**

**Also, a new semester has begun and I'm busy. I have many essays to be written and lots of reading and research to be done. So, if I do manage to write anything, it will be done on weekends, if I have time, and if my punishment is let up. **

**Well, now that my rant is over, I hope you enjoyed and I hope you review.**

**I'll need something to read and cheer me up from my FF absence!**

**Lu**

**PS. Pepe, I didn't ignore or forget you. I gots myself grounded, so don't worry. No car crashes, just banned from internet (Somehow, my dad figured out how to block my wifi! I know, my dad- I was shocked too) until I have "earned the right back." Mother is coming, I must depart! **

**Goodbye to all!**


	10. Chapter 10

_The Dinner_

After about ten minutes of chitchat with the lovely Jeanine, Fina, and Ana, (all of whom believe that the pirates would win in a fight against ninjas…mostly because they think Johnny Depp is hot as Captain Jack Sparrow. But still, it makes the score five to three; Dimples is on Team Ninja; yet another reason to hate the guy), Maria says that dinner's ready.

Ricky Dimples gets up from where he's sitting (on the other side of the room from Leah, which pleases me to no end), and walks over to Leah's couch. He proceeds to make an idiot of himself BY bowing low, saying "It would be my honor to accompany you to dinner, m'lady."

What. A. Douche.

What the fuck is he doing? This is not _Medieval Times_, he can speak proper English. Although, if he had to wear those ridiculous tights that the guys at _Medieval Times_ have to wear, that _would_ be pretty sweet.

But, since the universe hates me, Leah giggles. Yeah, freaking giggles at this guy, and takes his hand.

"_I hate him,"_ Jacobina pouts. _"Seriously, who does he think he is? Clearly there is a connection between the two of you, it's __undeniable!__ Yet, you let Dimples just flounce on in and parade her over to the dinner table with his slicked back hair and tight pants? Are you kidding me! You're going to let him just steal __your__ girl?"_

"_Oh, hell no!"_ I shout.

"_Damn straight you're not. You're going to march into that kitchen and you are going to sit down next to him and be really polite and courteous to him."_

"_Yeah! Wait, what?"_

Jacobina sighs, _"You saw __Mean Girls__, right?"_

"_Rachel and Rebecca-"_

"_Yeah, yeah, they 'made' you,"_ Jacobina interrupts. _"I gotcha. So, you know how Cady and Regina were really nice to each other even though they hated each other with a passion?"_

"_Yeah…" _

"_Well, that's what you're going to do. You're going to be really nice to Fabio Dimples and then crush him,"_ Jacobina plots. _"You're going to pretend to be all buddy-buddy with him, get to know his game, and then just eliminate him from Leah's life."_

"_You don't want me to kill him, do you?"_ I ask nervously.

Jacobina rolls her eyes. _"No! I just want to you ruin him, socially. Make him look like the worst possible guy for Leah to date." _

"_Oh, I get it. I think I can do that."_

"_Good, because he's really attractive and it looks like Leah may like him."_

"_Way to be supportive,"_ I mumble sarcastically.

Jacobina throws her hands up in surrender. _"I told you that I hated him."_

With Jacobina's plan in mind, I walk into the dining room, letting all of Maria's human friends go in first. Being the last one in, I don't get to pick where to sit. Translation: the free seat that's in between the two most awkward, annoying, chatty, rude, talks-with-their-mouths-full, hogs-the-elbow-room, oblivious and hated people of the party is where I get to sit.

I know; I'm just _that_ lucky.

Now, I know what you're thinking: "What's wrong with sitting in between two beautiful Latino women, Jake?" Well, I'll tell you. They talk. Loudly. All the time. In Spanish.

Loudly.

Non-stop.

About the same things.

All the time.

I've known these women for about ten to fifteen minutes and I'm ready to kill them. I'm dead serious. All they talk about is someone named "Manny" and how they can't wait for "Manny" to show up so that they can "party it up." That then starts the dress conversation, which eventually leads to them reminiscing about old parties in some dresses, which makes them talk louder, and louder, before they start to yell in Spanish, which comes right before the laughter.

Yeah, they laugh loudly and obnoxiously, too.

I'm in between the both of them.

Kill me now, _por favor._

_Por favor, le estoy pidiendo._

"Ah! Yacob! Come sit down with us!" Fina yells, loudly.

Damn it. I make my way over to that dreaded seat, cursing every single pack brother I have.

I haven't even sat down yet when Ana clutches my arm with her long, sharp, red nails and smiles. "Yacob, aren't you excited for the wedding!"

"Mhm," I nod, "very excited."

Fina claps. "Miha, I think that we might be a _dama de honor!__"_

Ana squeals and claps. "That would be _el sorprender!__"_

Oh my god, I'm going to kill them. Seriously kill them. They don't have Spanish accents. For god's sake they're from Oregon! They're third generation immigrants! _Why _are they talking like this? Why?

_Porque?! Porque, Ana y Fina?! _

_Porque?_

I groan and smack my head against the wall behind me, doing more damage to the wall than to my head. Unfortunately.

God, a concussion would be amazing right now.

Maybe I could fake one. I could fall off my chair and crack my head on the table or wall, anything really, and "hurt" myself. Because of all the humans here, I'd have to leave. Ana, Fina, Dimples, and Jeanine don't know about the legends so it would seem really weird if I didn't go to the hospital to get myself checked out. And…and…since I hit my head, someone would have to drive me there. That someone would be Leah.

Not only would that get _me_ out of this tenth circle of Hell, but it would also get Leah away from rubbing elbows with Ricky Dimples. Oh yeah, this is a good plan. I just need to hit my head _just_ right so that I can split it open enough to get a little blood going so that they would all insist that I go to the hospital to get myself checked out. Hmm, maybe if I leaned my chair back enough and then just fell…

"Dinner is served!" Maria smiles as she puts down a gigantic ham on the table.

Damn, she made ham. I love ham.

Maria looks at me and smirks before sitting down in her seat and helping herself to some roasted potatoes.

Well played Maria, well played.

I forgo my plan in favor of being fed some delicious ham and start to pile "small" helpings on to my plate, mindful that there are humans at the table. Said humans don't know our furry secret, and the large appetite that comes with it, so my usual servings (mounds of food that would make a grown man's stomach burst) would not only seem impossible, but impolite. So the guys, Leah, and I all pile on these _tiny _spoonfuls of food onto our plates, each of us planning a quick run to any fast food restaurant after dinner to buy tons of food to satisfy our hunger cheaply, and make dinner conversation.

Leah sits diagonally from me and is busy chatting up Ricky who, because I'm just one lucky SOB, is sitting right across from me. Smiling. Offering me some roasted carrots.

Jerk.

Plastering on a sarcastic smile, I realize that Jacobina's plan to be nice to Ricky Dimples is going to be difficult. "No thank you. I don't like roasted carrots."

Accepting the plate of green beans from Fina, I do my best to ignore Ricky Dimples who, at the moment, is busy pouting. Not a frown, or a scowl, or a glare, but a pout. He looks like Claire does when she sulks in the corner on the rare occasion when she doesn't get what she wants.

A smile emerges on his face. "Are you sure you don't want to try one? The seasoning on them is delicious. I bet these carrots could change your opinion," Ricky singsongs.

"I really don't like them, but thank you," I grit out with a smile plastered on my face. What is this guy's deal? I said I don't want a carrot, not that I wanted him dead (which I do, but I didn't say out loud, did I?). I like my carrots au naturale. Raw. I like hearing the crunch whenever I bite into one, imagining Bugs Bunny saying "What's up Doc?" whenever I feel like it. It's one of the tiny pleasures in life that I would like to keep and if Fabio over there asks me to eat one of his mushy, roasted carrots one more time, I'm going to kill him.

I don't care if he's in the wedding and is important to Maria, (it's not like she's my imprint), it's my body and I will eat whatever the hell I want. And that does not include roasted carrots.

Leah sees our little conversation and finally intervenes. Thank god, I have never been so glad for Leah to interrupt a conversation in my life. All I need her to do is distract Dimples, for a very short minute, so that Ricky forgets his carrot pushing and I can finish making my plate. Catching her eye, I nod my head slightly towards Dimples and roll my eyes, hoping that she understands how close I am to killing him.

Leah nods her head and looks from me to the plate to Ricky and back to me again before she smiles. "Problem, gentlemen?"

Closing my eyes, I let out a frustrated breath. She's going to have her fun before she helps me out. Just breathe.

"No, no problem. Jake here just asked me to pass him some roasted carrots," Ricky smiles, flashing his white teeth and two dimples before scooping some roasted carrots on to my plate.

Scowling, I glare at my plate. Stupid carrots. I scowl at Leah. Stupid Leah for not helping. I glare and pray that Dimple's head will blow up.

Stupid Ricky.

Ignoring the carrot incident, dinner is going rather well. Leah hasn't talked to Dimples anymore since, thank god, she found better conversation with Quil who's talking about his philosophy course at university.

After dinner, Maria, Chatterbox 1 (because I suggested it), Chatterbox 2 (because she and Chatterbox 1 are attached to the hip), and Embry (because he's whipped) cleared the table for dessert. I make conversation with Jeanine who's doing post-grad work for a Business Communications program at Columbia. We chat for a bit, and I get some dirt on Dimples.

Apparently, he's a chef, loves to go dancing, is hilarious (which was proven correct when Leah burst into another round of giggles after Ricky said something that was _"So bad!". _ I highly doubt that he's funny, I'm sure that everyone is just laughing to be polite), and he loves cars.

"_Oh look, you have something other than having the hots for Leah in common! Yay!"_ Jacobina sarcastically shouts.

Wanting to know more about Dicky Ricky, I slyly ask what I've been dying to know all night. "So, Jeanine, if he's so great, he must have a little lady at home, right?"

Jeanine smiles and shakes her head, "Nope, he's as single as the rest of us here."

Damn it all to hell. "Oh," I say softly. "Well, I guess that's good for everyone else, eh?"

I send a smile at Jeanine and she grins back at me. "Yep, we're all really lucky." She sends me a wink before helping Maria and the Chatterboxes cut and distribute the "practice cake."

After we finish the triple layer lemon cake, (which, considering how everyone at the table stopped eating their slice midway through, is not going to be their wedding cake), Maria and Embry stand together at the head of the table and clear their throats.

"So, I'm guessing you all know the reason why we've asked you here," Embry smiles.

The whole table laughs and nods, some of the guys shouting things like "Free food!" and "To make up for forgetting my birthday!" Leah and I grin and glance at each other before looking back at Embry and Maria.

Embry starts, "As you guys know, Maria and I love each other very much and—"

Quil and Seth interrupt him, shouting, "Awww!" and "Young love!" before Embry glares at both of them, silently warning them to shut up or else he'll hamstring them next time their on patrol.

All throughout their little speech, I play with my fork when I get an idea. This is the perfect opportunity to get back at Leah for her little footsie stunt from before. With that set in mind, I focus my attention on Embry and Maria and start to stroke Leah's leg. Not looking at her for any type of reaction, I continue to play footsie with her and have to control myself at her new tactics.

After a couple of "attacks" Ricky Dimples giggles. Leah looks at him and asks if he's okay. Psh, he's not okay, the guy's weird. Who laughs in the middle of a speech? Honestly, I don't understand what this guy's deal is.

I roll my eyes and look over at Leah, but instead lock eyes with Ricky Dimples. Holding my gaze, Ricky makes me feel very uncomfortable with his serious gaze. Especially since I feel Leah's foot start to slowly stroke my leg higher, and higher, and- oh my god.

I look underneath the table and sure enough, a foot that does not belong to Leah is stroking my thigh.

Shit.

Shooting up, I tuck my legs towards me and refuse to believe that I just played footsie with a guy.

Sick.

Ah fuck, and he's the enemy too!

Aw fuck. Why me?

Taha Aki must hate me.

My pity party is interrupted by Jeanine squealing and hugging Maria shouting, "Yes! Of course! Of course!"

Well, it looks like Jeanine is going to be Maria's maid of honor. Maria looks at Leah and the Chatterboxes, who all nod and smile saying that they would love to be a bridesmaid.

Finally after the Chatterboxes calm down and stop shouting and crying, (who cries after being asked to be a maid of honor? I know it's boring and you have to wear an ugly dress, but you don't have to _cry_ about it), Embry shuffles his feet and looks at me. "Jake, erm, we've been friends for a long time and you know that I love you like a brother and I was wondering if you'd, ya know, be my best man?"

I pretend to think about it for a minute before looking up at Embry frowning. "I don't know man, you like ninjas better than pirates and-"

Embry slaps me in the back of the head. "Dude, be serious!"

I punch him in the shoulder. "Ow! That hurt, and yes I will be your best man! Touchy." I rub the back of my head until Embry pulls me into a man-hug.

Seth and Quil sniffle and pretend to cry at the "touching moment" where their "boys are all grown up!"

After our little bromance moment, Embry asks the rest of the guys, Dimples included, unfortunately, if they'd stand up there with him. They, of course, say yes.

Once the whole "who is wedding party?" situation is settled, we all head back into the living room and talk. Embry and Maria are sharing the loveseat acting all couple-y and Quil and Seth are talking to the Chatterboxes, arguing about something that's not important. I search the room for Leah who's busy with, you guessed it, Ricky Dimples. They're sitting next to each other on one of the couches, talking and laughing. One of Dimples' hands is resting on her thigh and the other is cradling one of her hands, tracing patterns on it, pointing out significant lines on her hand.

Fucking prick. What the hell is he doing? Why is Leah letting him do this? She should be scowling at him, sitting as far as she can get away from him on the couch. Leah should be slapping his hand off of her thigh and pointedly ignoring him because she doesn't like him, want him, or need to be around him. She should not be leaning in towards him, heads close together, laughing and smiling as he continues to stroke her hand.

He must have drugged her. He must have injected her with something when she opened the door. It makes perfect sense. I mean, who is going to think that a nice, funny chef would inject an innocent girl with drugs at a dinner party?

Exactly, no one would. Especially if the dimpled man has as many fan girls as Justin Bieber (a guy whose popularity is a mystery to me).

Jeanine comes over and stands next to me. She follows my gaze and smiles. "You don't have to worry about any competition over there, you know," she says, nodding towards Leah and Dimples.

Tearing my eyes away from Leah, I look at Jeanine. "Really?" Could Leah not be Ricky's type? If that's true, it's his loss. Leah's absolutely gorgeous, not to mention smart, funny, stubbornly loyal, strong, fun, sexy, and genuine. If Leah's not his type, I'd hate to see the girl he winds up with.

Jeanine gives me a pointed look, "Trust me, Leah is definitely not his type."

Grinning, I spend the rest of the night chatting with Jeanine and the guys, secure with the thought that Dimples won't make a move on my girl.

At around 11:30, people start shuffling towards the door, food packages in hand. The Chatterboxes and Maria hug and say goodbye while the guys and I talk about Quil's new place and his renovation plans now that Embry and Maria have "officially" moved in together.

I excuse myself to go and say a quick goodbye to Jeanine and thank her for saving me from killing the Chatterboxes and Dimples all night by distracting me with various video game strategies. Just as I'm giving her a hug goodbye, I see Ricky Dimples hug and kiss Leah goodbye.

Controlling myself, I wave goodbye to Jeanine as she backs her car out of the driveway and walk over to the guys, ready to ask Embry what the deal is with Dimples. When I get there, the guys are talking about a new strategy for Quil's new game on X-Box and Quil invites Seth over.

"Aw, man I can't. Leah and I came together and she'd kill me if I took the car and left her here," Seth sulks.

Confused, I look at Quil. "You can't drive?"

He shakes his head. "I don't have my car here since Embry was over at my place before and he drove me here."

"If he drove you here, how were you going to get a ride home?" I ask.

Quils shrugs. "I would have run, but I have all of these leftovers now, so I guess I was hoping you would give me a ride home."

Shaking my head, I try not to hit Quil for his stupidity.

Finally, I get an idea. "Listen, I'll give Leah a ride home," I tell Seth. "You go with Quil and play X-Box at his place and I'll drop Leah off. You guys live like two minutes away from my place so it's no problem."

Quil claps his hands and smiles. "Problem solved! Thanks Jake."

Seth gives me a questioning look and asks, "You sure?"

"Of course he's sure. Jake loves his pack, don't ya Jake?" Quil smirks while ushering Seth towards Leah's car.

Shooting a glare at Quil, I nod. "Definitely. I need to talk to Leah about some vamps that might be visiting the Cullens' place anyways," I lie.

"Okay, thanks man." Seth waves before getting into the car and driving off to play X-Box at Quil's.

"No problem." I smile and look for Leah. I spot her on the porch, sans Ricky Dimples, and wave her over.

"Where's Seth?" she asks.

"He took your car and went over to Quil's to play some new game." I explain quickly, guiding her towards Geraldine.

"You have _got _to be kidding me! He just _took my_ car?" She looks at me to confirm and I nod. She lets out a sigh before grinding out, "I'm going to have to kill him when he gets his ass home. How the hell am I even going to get home now? He just took my freaking car!"

I send her a "you're seriously asking that question when I'm standing right here" look before I tell her. "I can give you a ride home."

Leah looks at me warily, weighing her options, before nodding slowly.

"C'mon, can't keep dear old Geraldine waiting, now can we?"

Smirking, I follow her to the Rabbit and make my plan. This is my "opportune moment" to show Leah how good it feels when she's with me. How I can do it better than any other little 'boyfriend' ever could.

All we need is an empty house.

Good thing Seth is at Quil's.

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything.**

**Flyaway Dove, an awesome beta. Big hugs.**

**Thank you to all who reviewed! I'm so sorry that I couldn't reply to anyone, but I will try when the 'rents aren't as harsh!**

**Again, I have tapped into the internet illegally during punishment time, plus I sent some stuff to my beta from the school library (where I think the librarian knew what was going on but didn't say anything). I am ashamed at my deceit, but I did it all for you, my faithful readers, I did it for you!**

**On that note, all of you guys suck. Really. I mean what the hell? You guys read the last chapter and then all of a sudden you all friggin KNOW my plans for Ricky Dimples?**

**I hates all of your psychic asses.**

**All of you.**

**Now, question time: If you had to choose between having any guy from the pack and Captain Jack Sparrow or William Turner, who would you choose?**

**Personally, I'd go with the sexy Pirate Captain (grins) pirates are just better.**

**Well, school has been a bitch and ****I'm extremely busy since my English teacher, even though she is absolutely brilliant, scares me and is a harsh (but fair- she wants us all to learn and improve, so extra points for her) marker so I must practice writing commentaries and proofread my essays like a thousand times. **

**Not to mention keeping up with the Winter Olympics (my parents said that they would let me watch some of the games with them- like speed skating which is friggin' INTENSE!!), all of this leaves me with about five minutes for myself which is spent sleeping.**

**Well, I'm glad all of you are still bothering to put up with me. **

**Anyways, I hope you enjoyed and I hope you review (cough THERE ARE 60 OF YOU WITH THIS ON ALERT HINT, HINT, FREAKING HINT!!!!! Cough).**

**Lu**

**PS. To all my Canuckers, WE GOT NOT ONE, BUT **_**TWO**_** GOLD MEDALS ON OUR HOME TURF GUYS! THIS IS AMAZING! I LOVE ALEXANDRE BILODEAU AND HIS INSANE SKIING! I LOVE MAELLE RICKER AND HER AMAZING-TASTIC SNOWBOARDING SKILLS! WOOT! I'M RIDING THE HIGH AND I JUST HAVE ONE WORD: GOLD. GOLD, BABY, GOLD. **

**ALEXANDRE BILODEAU/MAELLE RICKER IS MY HERO. (YES, I'M SEEING THEM AS ONE PERSON NOW: GOLD)**

**GOLD!**

**PPS. To the person who said "Wood" in my "When I say 'Edward' you think?" poll, whoever you are, you're my hero. The fact that someone else in FanFiction land knows who Ed Wood is makes me smile. Whoever you are, please tell me in a review. I need to just comment on how awesome you are to your "face." **

**On that note, since you guys are probably reading about my poll and are wondering what poll I'm talking about, why don't you go check it out and vote. I'm curious to see the results.**

**Goodbye all, hopefully my punishment will end soon and I can reply/read/review soon!**


	11. Chapter 11

_Sleeping Together_

You know that moment in life when you just feel that finally, _finally _everything is going according to plan. That, for once in your life, you know exactly what's going to happen and that, despite your pessimistic and cynical thoughts, that it is _actually _happening.

Like that moment when you wake up and realize that you're not at home with Mum and Dad, but are in _your _home. That you finally did it, you're on your own and are really starting your life; getting a job, doing what you love, meeting new people, starting relationships, becoming successful.

Or the simpler, more nerve-wracking moment when after you just put your heart on the line by asking some girl, no, by asking _the_ girl if she wants to go out with you on Friday and she says _'yes'_ making that moment when you feel so nervous and dejected, thinking that she'd never go out with you, when your heart is in your throat, furiously pumping and making every breath an effort, totally worth it.

But then, since Life's a bitch that refuses to, for once in her bitter existence, give you a break, the worst thing happens. The moment turns and things get awkward.

I'm talking about tumbleweed getting blown across the street awkward. I'm talking about a moment so awkward that the crickets refuse to make noise.

That moment, ladies and gentlemen, is happening _right now_.

I just backed out of Embry and Maria's driveway and the car ride is already awkward.

Leah's not saying anything because she's still pissed that Seth took her car, and I have no idea what to say. Usually, making conversation would be easy. Mostly it would begin with me teasing her, which would then result in her retaliating, and then we would bicker before we'd make out which would then lead to the fun stuff.

Yeah, _that_ fun stuff.

And despite my plan to show Leah that I'm it for her, that I'm the only guy that can make her feel good, both emotionally and physically, that I'm the one that knows her body and mind better than any other guy out there, I just want her to talk to me.

"_So say something!"_ Jacobina yells.

"_What do you suggest I say? 'Hey Leah, I know you're pissed that Seth took your car, but I just really wanted to drive you home so that IHLPFW could have another meeting so I can show you that I'm better than Sam, Ricky Dick-face, and any other guy you've ever been with combined. Oh, by the way, I think I may have feelings for you. Just thought you should know!'?"_ I growl.

Jacobina sighs. _"Why is it so hard for guys to make conversation?" _

"_Well I don't hear you doling out any conversation topics,"_ I comment darkly, getting irritated at her pressure to get me talking when I have no idea what to say.

Jacobina stamps her foot and huffs, _"Say something! Say __anything!__ It has to be better than this silence!"_

"_WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO SAY?" _I shout.

"Jake, how do I turn on the radio?" Leah asks, turning her attention from picking her nails to the many knobs and buttons on the dashboard.

"_YES!"_ Jacobina squeals. _"With music the ride won't be half as awkward! Turn on the radio!"_

"_Sure, sure_," I answer Jacobina with a nod, turning the radio on for Leah.

"Thanks." Leah gives me a small smile before trying to find a good station.

"_Oh shit, what if she turns the radio on some sappy love song like Mariah Carey, or some heavy metal song that has her screaming 'DEATH! DEATH! DEATH!'? How am I supposed to work with that?"_ I panic.

"_Calm down! You know Leah; would she want to listen to Mariah Carey or heavy metal? Hmm?"_ Jacobina raises an eyebrow.

"_No,"_ I mumble.

"_Exactly,"_ she gloats. _"Now watch the road and try to think of something to say. But remember: stay calm!"_

Following Jacobina's instructions, I concentrate on the road while Leah fiddles with the radio until she finds something.

"Oh! I love this song!" she smiles as she turns up the radio.

I recognize Deborah Harry's voice and the song "Heart of Glass".

Bobbing her head from side to side, Leah starts to sing along; "Once I had a love and it was a gas, soon turned out had a heart of glass. Seemed like the real thing, only to fi-ind much of mistrust, love's gone behind."

No longer looking at the road, I can't help but stare at Leah. She's _singing. _

She's singing _badly. _

_Really _badly.

Do _not_ laugh.

Dear God Jake, in the name of Taha Aki, do not laugh if you want to live.

"Once I had a love and it was divine, soon found out I was losing my mind," she starts to smile and really belt it out. "It seemed like the real thing but I was so bli-ind, much of mistrust, love's gone behind."

Resist.

Resist the temptation.

Biting my lip, I try so hard not to laugh. It's really not that funny. It's not like I can sing either.

And yet…

Lost in the song, Leah closes her eyes and continues to sing and dance in her seat, giant smile on her face, completely ignoring me. "In between what I find is pleasing and I'm feeling fine, love is so confusing there's no peace of mind."

Prying my eyes from Leah's dancing form; I try to focus on the road.

Breathe: in through the nose, and out through the mouth.

Do not laugh. Do. Not. Laugh.

Leah opens her eyes and locks her gaze with me. Her singing trails off and dies at the end: "If I fear I'm losing you it's just no good, you teasing like you do."

I have the strongest urge to laugh, to tease her and ask what Simon thought of her singing, but I resist. What I can't resist is the chuckle bubbling in my throat.

Soon her gaze turns into a glare when she sees the shit-eating grin on my face. Instantly, I feel the need to protect my balls. Leah has a feral grip and knows to aim where it hurts in order to get revenge.

And I like Gomez and Esteban where they are.

Besides, I don't get why she's mad. She looked cute and happy when she was singing.

Ha! She looked happy and I didn't even have to open my mouth! Take that Ricky Dick-face. I didn't have to sprout out some lame joke for her to politely laugh at.

Jacob: 1. Dick-face: 0

Interrupting my internal bashing of Dick-face, Leah snaps at me. "What?"

"Ah, uh, it's, you, um." I stare at her, trying to figure out what in the hell to say.

"_Help!" _I beg Jacobina.

"_You're on your own with this one. I'm not getting involved with this." _Jacobina throws up her hands in surrender.

I'm definitely going to get punched in the balls.

"_Or worse."_

"You, you just, it's, you," I clear my throat and try to think of something clever and witty, yet sweet, to say. Something that will allow me to keep my balls in a non-squished, non-pulverized, non-punched, non-kicked, not-harmed-in-any-way state.

This is going to be harder than I thought.

While I'm thinking, out of its own accord, my mouth opens and verbal diarrhea comes out, "You sound like a drowned cat when you sing and it's hilarious."

Shit.

"_Way to go dipshit!"_ Jacobina yells.

"_It was an accident! Oh god! My balls! Gomez! Esteban! I hardly got any use out of you two guys! NO!"_ I yell mournfully.

"_You idiot!"_ Jacobina 'slaps' me. _"What about Leah? Huh? What about her?"_

"_What about her?" _I dumbly ask.

"_How do you think she feels? Hmm?"_

I look at Leah and she looks hurt, pissed, and horrified all in one.

"_Shit."_

"_Exactly. How do you plan of fixing __this__ one Romeo?" _Jacobina asks, putting her hands on her hips.

I look at Leah sheepishly, praying to Taha Aki that she'll think that me being 'honest' is 'sweet' and 'great for our non-relationship-relationship' instead of a dick thing to say.

"_Which it was,"_ Jacobina pipes in.

I continue to stare at her, trying to apologize with my eyes. Leah refuses to me my stare and focuses her gaze outside the windshield. Ignoring me, Leah refuses to sing but continues to mouth the words to the chorus.

Unable to sit in the silence any longer, I do the first thing that pops into my head to make this situation better: I sing.

More precisely, I imitate dear ol' Debbie Harry's falsetto voice.

Badly.

"Once I had a love and it was a gas, soon turned out to be a pain in the ass!" I half-screech, half-sing. Leah sends me a confused glance before a look of recognition crosses her face.

"Seemed like the real thing only to fi-ind," my voice cracks and Leah starts to laugh as I continue my lame impression, "much of mistrust, love's gone behind!"

I continue to sing the chorus long after the song has ended. By the time that we get to Leah's, I've moved on from "Heart of Glass" to "Call Me."

I kill the engine and stare out the windshield as Leah and I try to calm our laughter after my little karaoke session. Once she's calm, Leah looks at me and shoots me a genuine smile.

I lean forward, brushing my nose against hers, about to plant a soft kiss on her lips when Leah whispers, "I'm hungry."

Leaning back, she unbuckles her seatbelt and asks me, "You hungry?"

Trying to rebuff her rejection, I nod, "Yeah, I could eat."

"Good." She gets out of the car and walks to the front door. "I have no idea how they can expect us to eat so little and not be starving when we leave," she babbles as she opens the door. I follow her to the house, dragging my feet along the way.

"_Stop sulking! Get your head in the game, Jake,"_ Jacobina orders. _"So she didn't kiss you, so what? Get over it!"_

Irritated by my lack of response, Jacobina continues, _"If you had a choice between food and sex, what would you choose? Answer honestly. It'd be food, wouldn't it?"_

"_Yeah."_

"_So," _Jacobina presses, _"get over it and get in there and bond over food or something. Just stop sulking."_

"And the leftovers they give us are like a snack," I agree, stepping inside, following her into the kitchen.

Leah sticks her head in the fridge, shuffling things around, trying to find something for us to eat. Leah looks at me with a frown, "So, we don't have anything to heat up, and I have no money to order a pizza with."

"No! We're going starve!" I yell in mock-horror.

"Shut up," she slaps the back of my head. "I'm sure we can make something. It's not like we don't have _anything _in the fridge."

"Well, what do you know how to make?" I ask, skeptical of her cooking abilities.

"Well, I could make us one of three things," she says as she shuts the fridge. Leaning against the counter, she numbers the meals off; "One, we could have a grilled cheese. Two, an omelet. Or three, toast."

"Hmm, how many eggs do you have?" I ask.

"Umm," she opens the fridge before calling out, "We have enough for two omelets each." She shuts the fridge with one of her legs as she sets everything we'll need for the omelets down on the counter.

"Great."

Leah grabs a bowl and a pan from the cupboard while I grab all of the utensils we'll need.

I wash and dry the veggies while Leah cracks and whips the eggs. She watches me chop the vegetables from across the counter, waiting to be able mix them in with the eggs.

"What?"

"Nothing," she smiles. "You just chop slowly."

Rolling my eyes, I can't help but smile. "Sorry. Here your Highness," I bow as I hand off the chopped veggies.

"Thank you." She mixes the vegetables with the eggs.

Turning on the stove, Leah sets the pan down on the burner and we wait for a bit as the pan heats up.

"Spiderman or Superman?"

"Pardon?" I ask.

Leah rolls her eyes and asks again, "Who would you rather be, Spiderman or Superman?"

"Spiderman," I answer immediately. "Hands down. With Spidey, I don't have to wear that ridiculous costume that Superman does."

"Spiderman wears tights just like Superman," Leah retorts as she starts to cook one omelet.

"Yeah, but he doesn't have to wear that stupid Speedo on top of his tights," I reason. "Plus I have a mask to hide my identity where Superman just has glasses."

"Yeah, I never got how nobody ever figured out that Clark and Superman were the same person. I've seen Rachel with glasses and she doesn't look that different."

"Exactly. Plus Spidey's power is way better."

"I don't know about that," she counters.

"What? How can you say that?" I gasp.

"Well, Spiderman can only shoot webs, where Superman has super powers." She folds the omelet and starts another one.

"First of all, Spiderman has these 'superpowers,' too. And second, Superman can only fly and that's it. The guy is all muscle and speed. Spiderman has speed, stealth, awesome web power, he's great at photography, he can climb walls, his eyesight is like 100% and he's just generally awesome," I defend.

"How is 'great at photography' a superpower?" Leah asks with a smug grin.

We continue this debate while Leah makes the omelets.

"Are you almost done?" I ask, leaning my chin on her shoulder and wrapping my arms around her waist. "I'm _starving_," I whine, nuzzling her neck.

She leans her head back and smiles, "Yeah, go get us some plates."

We eat across from each other on the counter and continue our debate of 'Who is the better superhero?' while we wash the dishes.

"Fine, Batman is better than Superman," I relent. "But Scooby-Doo is way better than Batman."

"What? How does that work? Scooby-Doo isn't even a superhero!"

"Oh-ho! I beg to differ! Scooby and the gang fight crime. They catch bad guys," I point out.

"But how does that make them superheroes? They're just kids and a dog."

"You have something against dogs, Lee?" I smile.

"No," she rolls her eyes. "I just don't see how those 'meddling kids' can be superheroes."

"I could say the same thing about Batman. The dude is just a billionaire with gadgets. He's on the same playing field as Scooby and the gang."

"Whatever, I still think Batman is better than Scooby," Leah shrugs.

"You're wrong, but whatever," I smirk at her irritated face.

After a while, she breaks the silence that settles in the room. "It's late," she says as she notices the time.

"Yeah," I agree.

"We should probably say goodnight."

"Mhm."

Slowly, I lean in and kiss her softly on the lips. "G'night, Lee."

"You're not going to stay?" she asks, slightly disappointed.

"Is that an invitation?"

"Do you need one?" she quirks a brow.

"Nope," I smile.

"Good," she says before crushing her lips against mine.

I moan when her tongue reaches mine, gripping her waist, crushing her body closer to mine.

When air becomes necessary, I break the kiss. Leah starts to trail kisses along the column of my neck, nipping and licking every so often. "Oh, fuck, Lee," I hiss as her teeth scrape against my neck.

Not being able to take her teasing anymore, I force my lips on hers, sliding my tongue through her lips. Curling her tongue around mine, Leah starts to run her hands through my hair, tugging on the end, bringing me closer to her.

I walk us back so that her back hits the counter. Taking advantage of having Leah cornered, I grab her by the back of her thighs and hoist her up on top of the counter, not breaking our kiss.

I run my hands up and down her thighs, slipping them underneath her dress and kneading her ass.

Moaning, her hands run up and down my chest as she leans up and whispers, "My room. Now."

Her arms and legs wrap around me like a vice as I carry her up the stairs to her room.

Making our way up the stairs, Leah starts to kiss the curve of my neck as she rubs her hips against mine.

Stifling a groan, I choke out in a warning tone, "Lee."

I moan. Fuck, will she stop with the hips? I'll drop her if she doesn't stop with the—ooh fuck. Right _there._

Fuck I love her hips.

Pressing her back against the wall, I attack her mouth with mine.

"If you don't stop that Lee, I'm going to drop you," I growl, thrusting my hips to hers.

"Ohh," she moans, "you'd never drop me, Jake." She smiles as she starts to nibble on my earlobe.

Hiking her dress to the tops of her thighs, I ran my hands over her hips to cup her ass. Leah groans into my mouth, tightening her legs around my waist as she starts to grind herself against me.

"Behave Leah, or you won't get anything," I warn in a strained voice, the bulge in my pants becoming painful.

Leah chuckles huskily before she gives a slight nod.

Pushing off the wall, I continue to walk up the stairs, moaning and groaning in time with Leah's grinding hips and her hot breath on my neck.

Finally reaching her room, I practically run inside, shutting the door and pressing Leah's back against it.

Getting over her initial shock of being slammed against the door, Leah's hands reach up and grab my hair in tight fists, dragging my mouth to meet hers. Leah's tongue enters my mouth and our tongues engage in a battle for dominance. Her tongue curls around mine before it strokes the roof of my mouth. I feel a jolt of arousal go through me and my hips thrust at hers.

Hearing her moan, I crush my body closer against hers, growling as she runs her hands down my chest. Her hands inch their way up, bringing my shirt with them until it is completely off.

Her hand glides up and down my chest, scratching every now and then, until it reaches the waistband of my jeans. Reaching into my pants, her hand disappears between my legs. I throw my head back as Leah strokes me.

Trailing kisses along her neck collarbone, my hand makes its way down in between her legs as I stroke her. Leah throws back her head and moans and I feel her get even wetter.

"Bed. Now," she orders between pants.

I have no objections. Right now all I want to do is ram myself into her, claim her, mark her, make her mine.

Walking backwards towards the bed, I continue to stroke Leah through her panties until the back of my legs hit the edge of her mattress. Falling back onto the bed, Leah breaks our kiss, her mouth leaving a hot trail of open-mouthed kisses down my chest all the way down to the waistband of my jeans. Quickly, she yanks down my pants and underwear before straddling me and grinding her hips against mine.

Grabbing her hip and thighs, I flip us so that we switch places and her back is pressed against the mattress.

Not wanting this to be just some other fuck, I take my time planting open-mouthed kisses down her neck until I reach the barrier of her dress. I let my hands roam down to the bottom of her dress before I slip my hands up under the fabric, dragging it up to her waist.

"Ja-ake," she moans.

Leah bucks her hips at me and I take this opportunity to slide my hands up her thighs and drag her panties down her legs. After tossing them somewhere behind me, I let my hands slide up her ankles, calves, thighs, and the sides of her body, dragging her dress up with me.

Once her dress is completely off, I can't help but stare down at her. She's breathing heavily, her lips are swollen and her eyes are completely clouded with lust.

Lust for me.

Only me.

She's_ mine._

Hitching her leg around my waist, I position myself right between her legs. Poised at her entrance, I thrust into her, hard. Letting out a cry, Leah starts bucking her hips back into me.

I moan and bring her hips up to me, hitting a new spot. We both moan at the new position as Leah continues to buck her hips against me in time with my thrusts.

"Jake!" Leah moans, "Oh! Fuck!"

I start to thrust faster and harder, abandoning my plan to go slow, our release on my mind.

"Fuck Lee, you feel so good," I murmur into her ear before thrusting into her again.

Grinding her hips to mine, she moans. "Harder!"

I take a hold of her hips and thrust faster, deeper, and harder.

"Yes! _Yes!_ Right there! Jake!"

Feeling her tighten around every inch of me, I curse as I pick up my thrusting. "Fuck!"

I thrust even faster and, soon, I feel Leah's body tense and begin to quiver before she yells, _"JAKE!"_

I bury my head in the crook of her neck and let out a groan, "Leah!"

Leah pants on my neck, trying to calm her breathing as I try to do the same. Once our breathing has settled, I roll off of her as she detangles her legs from mine, spent.

After catching my breath, I cuddle towards her, nuzzling her neck and placing kisses along the column.

"Mmm, Jake," she sighs contentedly.

Leah turns around and lays her head on my chest, tangling out legs together.

"I'm beat," she yawns.

I laugh, "Was I too much for you, Clearwater?"

"Ha, as if," she snorts. "It's just been a long-ass day, y'know?"

"Yeah," I mutter, tightening my grip on her waist, remembering her talking to Dicky-Boy.

I start to draw circles on the small of her back, enjoying the feel of her body pressed against mine.

Soon I hear Leah's soft snore and I take that as my cue to go.

Knowing the rules about sleeping over, (we don't wake up together since that would make it 'officially' sleeping over), I try to get off of the bed before I fall asleep and be screwed in the morning with Leah yelling at me saying that Seth or Sue could have come home and caught us together and "What then? What do we say _then?!"_

Carefully, I try to release untangle our legs and release Leah's grip on me. "No!" Leah whimpers as I try to pry her arms off of me.

"But—"

"Stay," she yawns, snuggling closer to me, further tangling her legs with mine.

"Okay, I'll stay," I whisper.

Leah smiles and turns over so that we're spooning. Wrapping my arms around her waist, I cuddle closer to her, ready to sleep.

Just as I'm drifting off, I can't help the thought that goes through my mind: _I guess cuddling my pillow paid off after all._

* * *

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything.**

**Flyaway Dove, you are amazing for putting up with my bad grammar and horrible verb tenses. I bow to you.**

**Lots of family issues going on right now so I don't know when I'll be able to write or read anything. **

**Oh, and I don't think I'll write anymore lemons. God, writing this one was **_**painful. **_**I apologize if it seemed awkward, because it was definitely awkward writing it.**

**Anyways, you know the drill: I write, you read and leave a review to say 'hi.'**

**Lu**


	12. Chapter 12

_Waking Up Together_

There is a fine line between fantasy and reality. In my experience, when something is too good to be true, it isn't true.

Sadly, I've experienced this in almost all aspects of my life.

I wake up and feel a warm body pressing into me. Leaning in to this warm, soft body, I nuzzle its neck and take a deep breath.

_Leah._

Oh god she smells good.

She smells like _Leah. _

There's just this smell about her…it's just so intoxicating; I can't get enough.

She smells so…so _feminine_, and soft, like some sort of flower… but then she smells like us wolves, like something from nature.

The combination is intoxicating.

I inhale her scent, but more slowly this time so that I can savor it.

She smells like hydrangeas, pine, rain, sweat, sex, and something else. Something very familiar.

What is that scent?

I inhale again.

_Ooh_, she smells so good.

It's like an addiction.

I bury myself deeper in the crook of her neck. I smell an all too familiar spice on her skin. It kind of reminds me of a mix of cinnamon and something _male._

And then it hits me. Oh, ha, the male scent is mine.

And it's all over her.

Taking one last deep breath, I savor the smell of our scents combined.

God I love my smell all over her.

This has to be the best, most vivid dream I have ever had of Leah, and I've had many. Everything just seems too good to be true. Leah's here, we're cuddling, she's gripping my arm like she doesn't want me to leave, our legs entangled with one another, the sound of her breaths, and the scent around us. God it seems so _real._

But it's not.

Because I'm Jake and she's Leah and we'd never cuddle or spend the night together.

_Carefully, I try to untangle our legs and release Leah's grip on me. "No!" Leah whimpers as I try to pry her arms off of me._

_"But—"_

_"Stay," she yawns, snuggling closer to me, further tangling her legs with mine._

_"Okay, I'll stay," I whisper._

_Leah smiles and turns over so that we're spooning. Wrapping my arms around her waist, I cuddle closer to her, ready to sleep._

Shaking my head, I try to rid myself of that fantasy.

Well, since I'm dreaming, (which I am since sleepovers with Leah are, as the German say, verbotenen. The very idea is forbidden, frowned upon, punishable, prohibited, banned, illegal, outlawed, not allowed. Therefore this must be a dream. It's not like I haven't had this dream before…), I might as well enjoy it. This has to be the most realistic dream I have ever had and I am _not_ going to waste it.

Leah is snuggled against me, mumbling incoherently, shifting and cuddling closer to me once in a while. Keeping my eyes closed, I find the top of her head and give her a soft kiss before resting my chin there, keeping her nestled to me.

It feels so good to have her body pressed against mine.

After a while, I felt Leah shift and turn in my arms, leaning her head into my chest. Burying my nose into her hair, I sigh contently and enjoy the feeling of our chests rising and falling together.

Leah nuzzles herself into my neck and sighs, "Jake."

God I love hearing her sigh my name. Or scream my name. Or whimper it. Or moan it. Generally just my name on her lips does the trick.

"Mmm, Jake," she sighs again.

I smile smugly: looks like I'm not the only one having a good dream this morning.

I let her sleep a little longer, waiting for her dream and her mumblings to end, before I start to enjoy _my _dream. Feeling her smile in my neck, I let my fingers brush up and down her arm, past her shoulder, and linger at her collarbone.

"Mornin'."

I felt the heat rise up to her cheeks as she buries her face into my chest. She inhales deeply before sighing sleepily, "G'morning."

Okay, that's it. I am not opening my eyes.

Ever.

No matter what.

It's not often that I get dreams as realistic and _good_ as these. With my eyes closed, I can enjoy this dream to the fullest extent.

And boy, am I going to enjoy _this_ dream.

Letting the moment go on, I relax and bask in her warmth and the peace that envelops us. Then, I hear her murmur, "Jake."

"Yeah?"

"It's Saturday."

"Mhm," I mumble lazily, stroking her arm up and down.

"Seth at Quil's and Mum' at Charlie's," she hints happily. I feel her grin against the skin of my neck. "Seth won't wake up until this afternoon and Mum won't come home until dinner, which is in nine hours or so…" she trails off.

I feel a smile spread across my face.

Oh yeah, I'm _definitely_ going to enjoy this dream.

"And what are we going do with ourselves until then?" I tease.

She cranes her head up to meat mine and nips at my ear. "I'm sure we'll think of _some__thing_ to do." She trails off as her arms snake around my neck.

God I love this woman.

"And what would this _'something'_ be_,"_ I continue to tease, wrapping my arms more securely around her waist, ensuring that there is no space between us. Leah starts to wriggle in a half-hearted attempt to escape my grip, but stops when my lips touch the skin of her neck.

"_Ja-ake,"_ she complains, but I can hear the laughter in her voice.

"Le-ah," I mock.

She's probably rolling her eyes right now. I would open my eyes to confirm it, but then this whole dream would go "Poof! Gone," and I don't want that to happen.

Leaning down, I start kissing the palm of her hand. I hold her hands in mine and work my way slowly down to her wrist and to the inside of her forearm.

I can feel Leah's pulse racing, smiling as she tries to control her breathing. Continuing to plant kisses along her arm, I reach the crook of her elbow when I feel her fingers start to run through my hair.

Letting out a growl of approval as her hands tug at my hair, I continue my journey upwards. She shudders delightfully, gently tugging at my hair in an effort to pull my head up to meet hers, signaling that she was enjoying my ministrations and was beginning to get impatient.

Ignoring her impatience to kiss me, I work my way up to her shoulder and start planting nips in between kisses. Leah is trembling again, her breath becoming uneven and shallow.

Unable to control my need to kiss her, I increase my pace. My mouth jumps to her chest, pausing to nip at her collarbone. I am awarded with a groan before running my lips eagerly up the expanse of her warm throat.

Before I can even think about teasing her any more, Leah tugs at my hair and pulls me up for a real kiss.

Her lips are soft and insistent against mine. I let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding and pull her closer me. Her teeth are biting into my bottom lip as her fingernails score through my hair, pulling, tugging me closer to her. Her tongue fights with mine until I have no choice but to relent and let her tongue take the lead.

The kiss was beginning to get too passionate, something that I didn't want to happen just yet—I wanted to make this dream last—so I grudgingly force myself to slow down, which is a damn hard feat when you have Leah Clearwater using her tongue like a pro.

All I want to do is keep pulling her closer and closer until we are together, but as soon as that happy ending comes, I know that I'm going to wake up in my bed, clutching my pillow with a big mess to be cleaned up.

Gradually, I break the kiss, our lips meeting a few times more before I start to trail kisses down the other side of her body.

"What are you doing?" she asks, breathless and confused.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" I mumble into her skin sarcastically, continuing to nuzzle her neck before getting back to planting kisses along it.

"I don't know; why don't you open your eyes and tell me."

Open my eyes? Yeah, that's not going to happen. That will end the dream. I'll wake up and then this will be gone forever. This perfect, I-wish-it-were-reality dream will be done. Bye-bye. No more. Finito. Never to be dreamt again. This is the best damn dream I've had in a while and if Dream Leah thinks that I'm going to open my eyes and just let this go, she's crazy.

"No," I pout.

"No?"

"No," I shake my head before reaching her shoulder.

"Why?" she asks with a laugh.

"Because," I mumble, tightening my grip on her waist, "I'll wake up and you'll turn out to be my pillow." I pause and groan, "Again."

"This isn't a dream you dolt," she snaps with an underlying tone of affection lacing her words.

This isn't a dream?

This isn't a dream!

Score.

Hmm, but what if she's lying?

What if Dream Leah just wants me to open my eyes because she doesn't think that this is a dream? Or what if it _is_ a dream but Dream Leah, who thinks that she's _actually_ Leah, wants me to open my eyes because she believes that this Dream reality is actually reality?

"Jacob Black, open your eyes right now or you'll never touch me again!" Leah orders, smacking the back of my head for emphasis.

Ouch!

Yeah, I'm pretty sure this is reality.

Hesitantly, I open my eyes and am met with a gorgeous sight: Leah wrapped in my arms, hair mussed, lips swollen, cheeks flushed and a genuine smile on her face. Staring at her, I can't help the grin spreading across my face when I confirm that no, this is not a dream and yes, Leah and I cuddled all night.

Stroking her cheek, I mumble, "Hi."

"Hi." She bites her lip.

I plant a soft kiss on her lips. "Come on, we have to get up!"

"What? No, no, no, no, no!" Leah whines, snuggling further into the covers.

"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!" I counter. "Time to get up. Time to smell the coffee, walk among the roses," I smile just as my stomach grumbles. "To eat some breakfast!"

"C'mon Lee," I try to persuade. "Think about it. Pancakes, toast, cereal, eggs, bacon, waffles, sausages…all of that good stuff. And it's right downstairs. All we have to do is get out of bed and go to the kitchen. What do you say?"

She thinks for a second before rolling her eyes with a groan. "Ugh, I hate you," she whines with a slight smile on her face as she starts to get up and go downstairs.

"Well that's too bad, because I love you," I say in a sing-song voice.

Leah stops moving and looks up at me, challenging me with an eyebrow cocked. "Really?"

I was about to play it off as a joke, as me teasing her, but something changed. I realized that I don't want to keep denying it anymore. I don't want my feelings to be a 'joke' anymore.

I'm sick of keeping everything inside. I'm sick of worrying about her feelings and sacrificing my own to make her comfortable. I want to be able to hold her and say things like this to her without having to worry about how she'll take it. I'm sick of having this feeling in my chest whenever I see her and not being able to act on it.

Fuck it, I'm going to tell her. Looking deep into her eyes, I give a slight nod.

"Yes. Leah Marie Clearwater, I love you."

She stares at me before she bolts out of the room, down the stairs and out the door.

Stark naked.

Damn.

"_That did not go well,"_ Jacobina comments.

"_Ya think?"_ I growl.

"_No need to get pissy!"_

"_Well how would you feel if someone you loved just up and left after you told them you loved them for the first time? God! She just left! She didn't yell, curse, hit, say it back, nothing! She did nothing!"_ I yell while pacing the length of her room.

"_I have to go see her. I have to talk to her. I don't know what I'm going to say, but I'm going to say __something__!"_ I grab my pants and throw them on before running out of the house.

"_No, no, no, no, no!"_ Jacobina yells. _"Give her space! You're going to overwhelm her!"_

"_Overwhelm her? I just told her how I felt and she bolted. Right now, I have a million feelings running through me right now. I think I'm the one who is a tad __overwhelmed__,"_ I spit out.

"_Just calm down,"_ Jacobina soothes. _"She obviously didn't take it very well."_

I snort, _"Obviously."_

Ignoring my remark, she continues, _"But how would you feel if you were in what you thought was a casual relationship with someone and then one day, poof,"_ she snaps her fingers, _"they say 'I love you.' Especially after your first love, the person who you loved with all your heart, up and leaves you for your cousin with no hesitation because of one glance."_

"_You don't think that she thinks that I'll leave her, do you?"_

"_The whole point of this was for the both of you to relieve some 'stress' from the weddings without getting committed to one another so that if either one of you imprint, there won't be any drama,"_ Jacobina reasons.

"_And now you just created some drama."_

"_With my feelings?"_ I question sarcastically.

"_Well, yeah. You weren't supposed to get that involved."_

"_But Dad said that she feels it too! It's not just me!"_

"_Yeah, but she hasn't realized it yet,"_ Jacobina points out.

"_Or,"_ I counter, _"she has." _

"_And maybe she's just trying to sort it out. Trying to figure out how she feels and if being with you is worth it."_

"_She's happy with me, of course it's __worth it__,"_ I snap.

"_What if you imprint? What if she does? Is being with her for who knows how long worth losing her to the imprint?"_ she questions.

I have no idea.

"_This is why she's freaked out. She doesn't know either. Just give her some space. Let her calm down. She needs to think. She needs to get her feelings sorted-"_

"_Fine. I'll just go home. Give her some __space__."_

"_And make breakfast. Something healthy. I'm starving,"_ Jacobina orders as I throw on my clothes and run home.

Looks like I fucked up my whole "opportune moment" plan.

Well, it's not like things could get any worse.

* * *

Disclaimer: Don't own anything.

Flyaway Dove, an awesome beta. Big hugs.

There are literally 65 – **as in SIXTY FIVE!** – of you with this **on alert.** Now, I know that **most of you don't review** and although I am selfish and I would have **LIKED** to have had **more than like 25-ish reviews** per chapter (with the exception of Chapter 5, but let's not dwell on the past), I'm fine with it. But **last chapter** I only got **17.** **SEVENTEEN!**

Now I know I'm **no pro at lemons**, but come on. **COME ON!** I **worked my ass off** to write this and in response I get **SEVENTEEN REVIEWS?**

Way to make a girl feel loved (yes, that was sarcasm). But I get it. The **lemon was awkward** but I have no problems with you guys commenting on how to **make it better** or **politely advising** me to just fade to black (which I'm thinking may become my new BFF but that's up to you: see below).

So, on that note, I have a **poll going on for this story.** Basically, it goes like this: **Lemons. Yay, or nay?** Should I keep them going or just fade to black? It's up to you guys since you're reading it so **go and vote** 'er up! And since the **poll is anonymous**, you guys can be **100% honest.**

So, go and vote!

Lemons: yay or nay?

Thanks for reading, **please review!**

Lu

P.S. Question of the day! Choose: **Which is better: Buffy the Vampire Slayer and her relationship with Angel or Bella Swan and her (creeptastic) relationship with Edward Cullen?**


	13. Chapter 13

_**Rhett Butler**__: Forgive me for startling you with the impetuosity of my sentiments, my dear Scarlett. I mean, my dear Mrs. Kennedy. But it cannot have escaped your notice that for some time past the friendship I have felt for you has ripened into a deeper feeling. A feeling more beautiful, more pure, more sacred. Dare I name it? Can it be love?_

_**Scarlett**__: Get up off your knees! I don't like your common jokes!_

_**Rhett Butler**__: This is an honorable proposal of marriage made at what I consider a most opportune moment. I can't go all my life waiting to catch you between husbands._

_**Scarlett**__: You're coarse, and you're conceited. And I think this conversation has gone far enough. – Gone With the Wind_

_Fittings with a New Dress and a New Tux_

I love you.

Three words.

The three words that are supposed to bring two people together shoved her away from me.

Because Fate really hates me.

And because I don't know how to shut my mouth.

It's been about two weeks, (twelve days to be exact, not like I'm counting or anything), since I've seen Leah. She keeps pretending to have some errands to run and switching patrols with Seth or Quil. I swear to God if I have to hear one more thought about the Care Bears, Dora the Explorer, or – and I swear I'll kill Seth if he thinks of this ever again – the Pokémon theme song, I'll tie them up and throw them into Cullen land and let the Pixie have them; let's see how they like being dressed up like the Pixie's personal doll.

I could Alpha her into talking to me, but it wouldn't work.

She's a Clearwater. More specifically, she's Sue's daughter, and if Leah learnt anything from Sue, it's that violence is always the answer; especially when you teach your daughter how to throw a right hook at the age of five. It really did suck to be Phillip Thash at age seven. She also learned the art of avoidance, which she did with Sam when he was "courting" her – it worked really well until he said that if she went on one date with him that he would leave her alone and what did Sam do? He dazzled her so that she wouldn't mind if he broke his promise and asked her out again – and with brussel sprouts. I don't think she had ever brussel sprouts in her entire life.

She's doing a damn good job, but avoidance can only last so long.

Avoiding _me_ can only last so long.

Proof: see Bella Cullen (Yeah, yeah she's now Bella _Cullen _instead of Bella _Swan_ but I distinctly remember getting not one, but _two_ kisses from her and a confession of her love for me. Sure, sure it wasn't enough to overtake cold, dead and sparkly but still, love is love and I worked damn hard for that love).

But back to the issue at hand; Leah can't avoid me anymore.

Because today is Sunday.

Today is Sunday, July 14th, the day where I am dragged out to Port Angeles and stuffed into a car with four other guys, where there will be loud singing and fights about who is better: Taylor Swift or Selena Gomez. T-Swift wins hands down. Her songs changed my life. And no, I am not being sarcastic, the girl is just amazing with a guitar. Anyways, after an hour and a half or so (probably longer since we're going to take Embry's crap-mobile – which he refuses to let me fix), I will be stuck inside some hoity-toity tuxedo shop where some 87-year-olf German dude is going to measure me and fit me with a "suitable" tux for Embry's wedding.

Oh joy.

But the Brightside for today is that Leah's going through the same thing. Leah's going through the same thing in the shop _right next door;_ the German tailor has a seamstress wife who loves weddings and thought it was cute that both of their shops were neighboring each other. Man, you gotta love the love between Brigitte and Hans.

I hear the a car horn honk outside and I walk downstairs (yes, I am that much of a child where I will walk slowly to prevent the inevitable) and say bye to Dad before heading outside to go and have "happy fun times" with the guys on the way to Hans' place. Just as I'm shutting the front door, Embry honks the horn again, signaling for me to hurry the fuck up.

Like I'm not just standing right there.

Dick.

He's been spending way too much time with Dickardo.

Ugh, I'm going to be trapped in a car with Dickardo and have to listen to how much he and Leah have in common and how they're going to make such a cute couple walking down the aisle together at the wedding.

Stupid Embry and Maria having to have a wedding involving Dickardo.

Stupid Embry for making me Best Man while Mariamade Leah a bridesmaid.

Stupid Dickardo for being tall enough to walk down the aisle with Leah.

Stupid—My internal rant is interrupted by Embry honking the horn again.

"Alright, alright! I heard you the first time! Damn!" I hiss.

Running down the front steps, I jog over to the car and make my way over to the front seat.

"Well, hello," I say, shocked at seeing the person in the front seat.

She looks up at me with a frown and sunglasses covering her eyes. "I know, I know, the guys told me this was your seat, but please, for the love of God please just let me sit here. I couldn't take all the talk of pink and floral arrangements. Especially after the night I had with Ricardo, Fina, and Ana who all insisted that we become best friends with Jack, Johnnie, and Hose last night."

"Aww, what's the matter Jeanine, couldn't keep up with them?" I tease while getting into the back seat beside Quil and Seth.

"Well, I got them back," Jeanine said after shooting me a glare.

"Oh really?" I grin, happy to hear that some justice could happen to the Chatterboxes and Dickardo Dimples.

"Yes really. It just so happens that my dear friend Ricardo is a morning person no matter what the situation and I thought it might be best if he went with the girls, who are not morning people, especially when hungover, so that they could talk dresses and which color would go with each girl," she says with a malicious grin.

"You really are an evil genius aren't you?" I ask in awe.

Embry starts the car and backs out of the driveway as Jeanine turns down the radio to "a more suitable level."

"They know my weakness for tequila and exploited it. They must pay." She glares out the windshield. "Ow, okay, head about to explode. Night, night."

This is great! Jeanine is here and Dickardo is not. I can now sit and rest in the car and _not_ want to beat him into a pulp because of his annoying, slightly nasally voice. And considering how Jeanine has a nasty hangover, the guys won't be yelling and fighting over the radio and which singer is better.

Sinking into the seat, I feel myself relax as I lean my head back, ready to take a little nap.

"_Yeah, you go ahead and nap while Ricardo is over in the girls' car chatting Leah up about who-knows-what,"_ Jacobina grumbles in an annoyed voice.

"_What? What do you mean 'while Ricardo is over in the girls' car __chatting Leah up'__?"_ I growl angrily.

"_Well, what do you think is going on!" she_ shouts. _"Jeanine is here, Ricardo is not. He's going to meet us at the tailor's, which means that he's getting a ride there. To have a ride there, he needs a car; something he does not have. Something that Maria and the girls have. Now, if you put two and two together,"_ she says in a condescending, fake teacher voice_, "you get the answer: Ricardo is getting a ride with Leah and the girls to the tailor's."_

"_Son of a bitch!"_ I yell.

"_There we go,"_ Jacobina applauds. _"I knew the realization would hit __sometime__."_

"_He's got Leah!"_ I yell.

"_Yes,"_ Jacobina answers.

"_He's got my Leah!"_ I growl.

"_Last time I checked she wasn't—"_

"_He's got my Leah alone in the car!"_ I growl, getting angrier by the second.

"_Well, technically, no he doesn't but—"_

"_He's got my Leah alone in the car where he can flirt and touch and talk and touch her without me there to kick his ass!"_

"_I know you're probably ignoring me right now, but what the hell! I don't really think that Leah's his type."_

"_Oh God, and because I scared Leah off with my feelings she's going to fall right into his arms!"_ I wail mournfully. _"What am I going to do?"_

"_I have some advice. Hey! Over here! I HAVE ADVICE! Jake!"_ Jacobina tries and fails to grab my attention.

"_Maybe I could show her that I didn't mean anything I said. Maybe I should just give her what she wanted; a non-committed relationship. Just sex. I think I could do that. I think that I could push down my feelings and just carry on with the meetings,"_ I reason. _"If she's afraid of the feelings, then I should just hide them. I should just continue with the meetings and pretend like nothing happened. She is, so I should just go along with it,"_ I conclude.

"_Oh God, he's hopeless,"_ Jacobina huffs as she storms out.

"_Yeah, this plan seems good. Ignore my feelings and continue to be with Leah,"_ I nod. _"Sure, sure, I get screwed emotionally, but at least I don't lose Leah."_

With the plan in mind, I lean my head back and take a little nap before the hell that is the tux fittings takes place.

"Quit it!" I hear someone whine.

"No _you_ quit it!" another voice huffs.

"Well then stop hogging the seat!" the first voice whines.

"Well I would but your seatbelt keeps digging into my ass!" the second complains.

"That wouldn't happen if you stayed on your side!" the first voice shouts with what sounds like a pout.

Seth and Quil.

Ah, I love waking up to two idiots fighting. All we need is Jeanine or Embry yelling "Don't make me come back there!" then this will officially be like a little family field trip. Yay!

"We're here," Embry announces.

Seth and Quil run out of the car and race into the store. Jeanine forces herself out of the car and into the dress shop where the girls were already waiting. Embry and I make our way into the shop, both of us glancing at the neighboring store, longing to be with our girls.

No, bad Jake. Leah is not your girl. She made that clear. Now just stick to the plan. No emotions, just the meetings.

With that thought I walk into the store and say good morning to Hans. "Guten tag, Hans."

Hans nods his head in greeting. "Guten tag, Jacob."

I walk to the back of the store and sit down on my regular chair right next to Hans' office.

See, Hans and I have this relationship where he lets me sit in a chair in the back room where he sits, drinks, and curses in German about having to measure, sew and tailor suits for gigantic men in another wedding while I sit, drink, and pretend to be measured when I'm actually just sulking about having to go to another wedding and watch another couple in bliss while my girl is off gallivanting with tall dark and dimpled. It's a very nice system.

Especially since he happens to have a very nice collection of scotch.

Hans knows my measurements by heart from having to tailor God knows how many suits of mine. You would think that I could just wear one suit and reuse it, but no! Of course not! Each wedding just has to have a different theme, which requires a different colored suit.

So we have to come back here every time and get Hans to measure us, suit us, and tailor us.

It's one long ass process, but Hans and I worked out a routine.

He suits up the guys and walks into the back where I'm doing my "fitting."

"Dumme Jungen. Gott weiß, wie viele Prozesse ich sie ergebe, aber sie behalten nur, zurückzukommen, bittend um mehr Prozesse! Sie können keinen Prozess wiederverwenden, ach nein, müssen sie und kommen mich für einen anderen einer zu belästigen. Unterbrechen meine Zeit mit Beurteilt Judith. Ich liebe zuschauend Judith bearbeitet ihre Zauberei den dummen Kindern, die Beschweren auf ihrer Schau genießen," Hans grumbles while rummaging around the room, searching for two glasses of scotch for us.

"I hear ya, Hans. Judge Judy knows her stuff," I nod.

Right before we could drink any scotch, the scotch that Hans has yet to find, Brigitte waltzes into his office.

"Ach Hans! Ich denke, dass ich gehe verrückt zuhören diesen Mädchen reden! Leah schmollt und ich denke, dass ich unsinnig gehe!" She throws her hands up in the air before pacing.

"Oh, guten tag, Jacob."

I nod, "Guten tag, Brigitte."

Brigitte stands there and just smiles at me before speaking in German to Hans again.

Not wanting to interrupt their little husband/wife chat, I sneak out of the room. "I'm just going to go."

I hear Brigitte call out before going back to arguing with Hans. "Haben Sie Spaß mit Ihrer Freundin, Jacob!"

Based on the teasing tone in her voice, I think she was making fun of me. She likes doing that.

Instead of walking into the front of the store and hanging out with the guys, I walk through the adjoining door just outside of Hans' office that separates the two shops and walk through to see the girls.

Okay, I'm going to see Leah.

But it's completely innocent.

I just want to see how her fitting is going and what dress she's wearing for this wedding.

Will it be long? Short? Scoop neck or v-neck? Straps or strapless? Form-fitting or not? Will the color bring out her eyes, or the blue-black highlights in her hair?

I'm just a little curious.

And no, I don't sound like a girl.

Embry knows more about fashion than I do.

And so what if I have a creeptastic girl in my head? That doesn't make me crazy…or a woman.

I think.

I wander to the back right corner where the dressing rooms are. Sneaking past the other girls, I make my way over to Leah's dressing room.

"Knock, knock," I say while wrenching open the curtain.

"Jake!" Leah hisses, "What are you doing?" She pulls me into the tiny dressing room as she shuts the curtain separating us from the rest of the girls.

"Now, now, don't get your lederhosen in a bunch, I just stopped by to say 'hi.'" I wrap my hands around her waist.

"Lederhosen are Bavarian, not German you idiot," Leah snaps, slapping my hands away as she tries to smooth down her dress, inspecting herself in the mirror. She twists and turns in front of the mirror, not pleased at all. Letting out a frustrated growl, Leah leans her head on my chest.

"Ugh!"

"Why are you so upset Lee? Is it because of all the green?" I ask with a smirk, fingering the dress.

"It's not green, it's puke. Puke personified in something that the evil dress gods call 'fabric'," Leah complains with an adorable pout.

"It's not that bad," I try to make her feel better.

"Yes it is, don't lie. I look like a gigantic vomit-sicle," she grumbles while trying and failing to make the dress look decent.

I keep trying to convince her that the dress really isn't that bad, (even though it is, but that's beside the point), while trying to stick to the "no feelings, meetings only" plan. Right when I feel like I have a handle on myself, I break.

Leah looks up at me and I know that the plan might just collapse entirely. She looks up at me with desperate, insecure, sad eyes and asks in a shaky voice laced with desperation, "Really? Are you sure I look okay?"

God, can Life just give me a damn break?

First she wants no emotion, just a good lay. Then she wants a friend. After friendship evolves into love, she runs away. Now, now she wants a boyfriend assuring her that she looks fine in a dress that was clearly picked out to make her look as hideous as possible.

What the hell am I supposed to do?

Without having time to think, I walk up to her until there's less than a finger's space between us and whisper in her ear, "You're beautiful," before I bring my lips to hers.

* * *

Disclaimer: Don't own anything.

Flyaway Dove, an awesome super-speedy-quick beta.

This is going to be my last "long and annoying" AN to 'respond' from last chapter's AN:

To the people who were PM-ing and calling me whiney and ungrateful for the reviews I get: I'm not. I'm **very grateful for each review**. The only reason I want more reviews is because I want **more opinions** and constructive **criticism** about my writing and examples of **what's good/bad** in a chapter so that I can **improve my writing** and make it more appealing **for you** to read. Let me repeat: **I am NOT ungrateful for reviews**, it's just that **alerts** and **favorites** _**don't **_**tell me what works and what doesn't** in a story/chapter.

Anyways…

Thanks to everyone who reviewed.

Question of the Day (the answers for the last question was awesome and I'm an Angel/Buffy/Spike 'shipper, too): Who is a better artist: **Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus **or** T-Swift?**

Lu


	14. Chapter 14

_Chapter 14_

You know when you're little and you're terrified of seeing or being seen by something scary, so you stop, panic and close your eyes? Yeah, that reaction gets transferred into adulthood; you close your eyes, curl up into a ball and think; well, if I can't see it then it can't see me, ergo it's not real.

And that is exactly what I'm doing right now.

Well, not exactly.

I mean, I'm not curled up in a ball.

But my eyes are closed and I'm thinking that if Leah can't see me, then she can't see the emotion in my eyes.

If I just keep my eyes closed that I'll be able to convince myself that I'm with Leah. Like _really_ with Leah, not just physically but emotionally as well.

If I keep my eyes closed then I can convince myself that I'm with Leah because she wants to be with me. She wants to be able to hold me, touch me, make love to me.

Alas, my life is worse than episodes of _Passions, As the World Turns_, and the _Young and the Restless_ combined (yes, this is even worse than that time where Theresa was with the half-man-half-woman, not to mention her drama with Luis and his wife and the whole mystery of trying to figure out just who _is _the half-man-half-woman!) making this quest impossible.

From the second Leah crushed her lips against mine to the moment I pressed her up against the wall, I could think of nothing but how _right _this felt. How her arms snake around my neck, tugging me close to her, how she fits in my arms, how her body moves with mine.

It just feels like we should be doing this.

Granted we shouldn't be doing it in Hans and Brigitte's shop, but that's beside the point.

"Please," she pants.

"Please what?" I growl into her neck, wanting to hear her say it.

When nothing comes from Leah's mouth except for gasps and pants, I become frustrated. Why can't she ever just say it? Why can't she say how she feels or what she wants?

Having enough of her silence, I grab Leah by the shoulders, slam her up against the wall, and continue to make my way up her neck. "Please tell you that I'm fine with playing this little game? Please tell you that I don't care if I have to play this game for the rest of our lives? What?"

I press her back harder into the wall, bringing our bodies closer together. Our faces are inches apart. "What Leah? _Please what?_" I ask fiercely, trying to hide the quiver in my voice. I'm trying to be strong but I'm sure she can feel the anxiety rolling off my body in waves. I'm trying not to care, I'm trying so hard, but I do. _So much._

"Fuck me," Leah purrs in my ear.

I reach under her dress and run my fingers quickly over her panties, which are already wet. Leah gasps and I growl. "You're so wet Lee. All for me?"

"Only for you, Jake." Leah presses her hips down onto my hands.

Smug smile in place, I drag my tongue down Leah's throat and graze my teeth in the crook of her neck, having the strongest urge to bite her and mark her as mine. Pressing my erection into her stomach, I lock eyes with her and ask her hoarsely, "Are you sure you want this, Lee?"

"Yes," Leah nods, reaching up and tilting my face so that our eyes are locked. "Yes I'm sure, Jake."

Keeping her eyes locked on mine, Leah leans in and kisses me, softly, slowly, while her hand wanders down my chest to the waistband of my pants. She unzips my pants and dips her hand into them. My eyes close and roll into the back of my head at the feeling of Leah's hand on me. I take a deep breath in an effort to control myself.

When I open my eyes again I'm met with Leah's smirking face. Pulling her close, I kiss her possessively, one of my hands getting lost in her hair as the other slides down to her ass.

Our kisses are hungry and desperate. Flattening Leah against the wall, my hands are free to roam every inch of her body, touching every bit of exposed skin; marking my territory.

Leah removes her hand from my pants and winds both of her arms around my neck, fingers tangled in my hair, tugging me closer. She rotates her hips against the bulge in my pants, her wet heat grinding against my thigh.

Sliding my hands up her lean legs and under her dress, I remove her panties before grabbing her thighs and lifting her up against the wall. Leah wraps her legs tightly around my waist, her center rubbing against my bulge, causing us both the let out a groan of pleasure.

As I start to suck on her neck and collarbone, Leah reaches down into my boxers and wraps her hand around my swollen member, pulling it free. Stroking me slowly and deliberately, she sinks her teeth into my shoulder before soothing the wound with her tongue.

"Are you going to fuck me or you just going to tease me?" Leah purrs in my ear.

Locking eyes with her, I slide a fraction of an inch inside of her, ordering, "Say my name."

"Oh fuck," she moans.

"Say it," I growl, sliding in a little farther before sliding out.

"Jake, please. Fuck!" she whimpers, clawing at my back.

With that, I ram myself into her with as much force as I can.

In and out, in and out; I ram into Leah with wanton abandon, her hips moving forward to meet my every thrust.

Fuck I missed her.

Soon, Leah's legs tighten their hold on my hips and I feel her begin to clench and spasm around me. I smash my mouth over hers to muffle her moans just as I reach my end. My fingers dig into her thighs, pulling her closer to me as my head falls against her shoulder and I release inside of her.

"Lee," I pant into the crook of her neck before placing butterfly kisses along the column.

Once we catch our breaths, I place Leah back on her feet and lean against her.

"Fuck Jake," she gasps.

I look down at her and smile, bumping our noses together.

Leaning my forehead against hers, I hope that maybe I can send a message to her telepathically; _"I love you, Lee. I really do. And I swear I'm never going to leave you. I promise."_

For a moment I could have sworn Leah's expression changed, softened even. And then we heard it; a yell.

More specifically, a shriek.

A very loud, _girly _shriek followed by footsteps.

As soon as it happened, the moment passed and Leah's walls were back up and her eyes were cold once more.

"Jake, get off of me!" she hisses. I try and fail to hide my hurt look. Leah catches my sad look and rolls her eyes. "What? You want to get caught by Bobbsey Twin One and Bobbsey Twin Two?"

Leah disentangles herself from me and starts to fix her dress, trying to make it look like the rumples weren't from having a "group meeting."

Seriously? Why is it that every single time Leah and I are having sex someone has to come in and ruin our meetings.

_Honestly, can't we just have sex in peace?_

Giving up on the dress, Leah throws on her flats and turns towards me. _"Leave. Now."_ She didn't even sound angry, just annoyed.

_No, I guess we can't._

I shuffle outside the dressing room, leaving Leah to fix herself up before she ran out _inconspicuously_ after me to see what's going on.

Following the noise, I walk into the front part of Hans' shop. My view of the mysterious "action" is blocked by Fina, Ana, Maria, Embry, and Jeanine. Instead of looking over their heads, which is a pain and is really gross to when you get to see who has dandruff, (Fina and Ana should really use _Head and Shoulders_) I listen to Seth and Quil gossip about the "action."

"Oh. My. God," Seth stutters.

"I knew it," Quil nods his head. "I _knew_ it!"

"Oh. My. _God,_" Seth raises his voice.

Quil claps his hands. "I mean, I just _knew!_" He looks at Seth. "Y'know?"

Seth shakes his head. "No wonder he was Team Ninja. I mean, it just makes sense; the sneak attacks, coming at people from behind, everything." He pauses and thinks about what he said before a look of shock and realization shoots across his face. He rakes his hands through his hair. "Oh my _God!_"

"What's going on?" I ask, looking from one to the other.

Quil looks at me with an evil grin. "A reunion."

Seth, having gotten over his little shock, giggles.

"With who?" I ask, not getting the joke.

Quil giggles, "Heh, with—"

"Hey, what's going on?" Leah asks.

"Hey, Lee. Nice dress," Quil smirks, looking her up and down. "I didn't know that wrinkles and rumples were in this season."

Leah smacks Quil upside the head. "Jerk. It's not my fault the fabric is all weird and wrinkles easily."

Quil leans in and whispers in her ear, "Yeah, you'd probably be more believable if it weren't for all the _hickies_ on your neck. Let me guess," he smirks at me, "they just came out of no where."

At the mention of hickies, Leah's face turns red with anger and embarrassment before she glares at me and mouths, "Hickies? You're _so_ dead."

Glaring at Quil, I ask him again through gritted teeth, "Who's having this reunion?" I look at Seth, hoping that he'll tell me.

Getting his attention away from the reunion, Seth focuses on our conversation and notices the tension between us as he answers, "_Manny_'s here."

"Manny? Who's Manny? Oh, is he Jeanine's boyfriend?" I ask with a smile on my face at the thought of Jeanine (the girl still has a hangover and the thought of seeing her all preppy and excited about her boyfriend is hilarious).

Leah glares at me before asking Seth, "Who exactly is Manny reuniting with?"

"Manny! Baby! You're here! I'm so happy you're here!" someone, who is _not_ Jeanine, shrieks excitedly.

Craning my neck, I see Dickardo straddling some guy with black hair, tan skin, and blue eyes. Huh, come to think of it, this "Manny" looks an awful lot like Maria.

"Baby, I'm so glad you're here. And in time for our fittings! Yay!" Dickardo claps excitedly, planting kisses all over Manny's face.

Huh, I guess Leah really isn't Dickar—err, _Ric_ardo's type.

Suddenly the guy doesn't seem that bad anymore.

"_Really, you __really__ don't know why you don't hate Ricardo anymore?"_ Jacobina drawls sarcastically.

"_Nope."_ I shake my head. _"Must have been the carrot pushing that did me in."_

"_Carrot pushing? Really?"_

"_Unless that was a euphemism for something else…"_ I trail off.

"_Oh look, he's having a light bulb moment!"_ Jacobina drawls with faux pride in her voice. _"I'm so proud."_

"_Oh my god, Ricardo was hitting on me!"_ I shout in realization.

"_Finally!"_

"_What do you mean 'finally'? You knew? You knew that he was hitting on me and not Leah and you just let me let him do it?"_ I shout at her, _"What the hell?"_

Jacobina rolls her eyes at me and shakes her head. _"I thought it was pretty obvious when you went all, 'Don't touch my girl, I already peed on her!' with Leah."_

"_I did not!"_ I protest.

"_You did so!"_ Jacobina smirks_. "You got all green eyed with him and Leah and turned into Jerk-Boy extraordinaire!"_

"_I was __so__ not jealous."_ I shake my head.

I wasn't, he just creeped me out, that's all.

"_Ha, was to,"_ she counters.

"_Was not."_

"_Was to!"_

"_Was not times infinity!"_ I shout, refusing to listen to anything else Jacobina says.

"_Men,"_ Jacobina rolls her eyes, _"always in denial. 'No I'm not jealous. Why would I be jealous!' God, he's worse than Leah sometimes."_

My fight with Jacobina is cut short by Leah's giggle. "Man, he told me he was wild in the sack, but wow. I didn't think he'd jump his boyfriend."

Seth groans, "Thanks Lee, I know have unwanted images in my head."

"C'mon, let's go meet him," Quil sing-songs.

Moaning and groaning we all go over to meet Ricky's "Manny."

All the guys shake hands and man-hug Manny while Ricardo flits over and talks to the girls.

"Hey," Manny sticks out his hand. "I'm Manuel; Maria's brother."

I stare at Manny for a sec and just take in all of the similarities between him and Maria. They have the same eyes, nose, lips, ears… they look exactly alike, only Maria looks like a girl and Manny… doesn't.

Shaking his hand, I nod my head, "I'm Jake."

Manny's eyebrows shoot up as soon as he hears my name. "Jacob? As in Jacob Black?"

"Yeah," I draw out slowly, kind of wanting to take back my hand.

"Oh, good. I really wanted to talk to you," Manny nods.

Trying to get rid of the awkward air between us, I try to smile and ask, "What's up, man?"

"I just wanted to ask you to leave _my_ boyfriend alone," he warns in a tone as if telling me that it's going to be cold tomorrow and I should wear a jacket unless I wanted to catch a cold.

Unable to understand where this is coming from, I stutter, "What?"

What? It's not like I flirted with him.

Or even talked to him.

Except at the dinner party with the carrots.

OH you have got to be kidding me.

He thought that was flirting! Dickardo thought that we were flirting and then gossiped about me to his boyfriend.

That jerk!

I mean, yeah, I'm flattered, but still. That jerk! Now I'm being threatened by his boyfriend to "stay away".

It's no big deal because I can take him if it comes down to a fight, but I don't like being threatened.

It makes me feel all icky inside.

"Understand?" he questions. "Good." He nods before giving me a chance to respond and leaves to go see Ricardo.

Ugh, like I'd go for Dickardo.

Offended, I walk over to Leah and whisper, "I think I was just threatened that if I didn't stay away from Ricardo that Manny would strangle me with his feather boa."

"Seriously?" she laughs.

"Well, no, he never mentioned the boa but it was implied."

"Do you think you can protect yourself for five minutes while I go give Brigitte my dress so that we can get the hell out of here?" Leah teases.

"I don't know," I start, faux scared as I glance at Manny. "Look at him. He looks so strong. Like he could choke me with his boa with only a single flex of his biceps!" I squeal. "Please don't leave me! I'll die!"

Fighting a smirk, Leah rolls her eyes. "Shut up." She walks over to the other shop while the guys and I return our suits to Hans.

"Thanks Hans." I hand him the suits. "Sorry about the scene." I gesture over my shoulder to Manny and Ricardo.

Hans shrugs, "Es ist nichts."

Brigitte walks by and takes the suits from Hans, ready to put them away with the girls' dresses. "Besides," she winks, "it's not like you and Leah haven't done it before in our shop."

And with that, Brigitte and Hans leave for the backroom with the suits and dresses, leaving me scared and wondering if Leah and I are really loud or just extremely bad at being stealthy.

Following the guys out to the car, I get into the back seat, ready to go home. Quil gets in the back with me, with Seth and Embry in the front.

"Where's Jeanine?" I ask.

Quil smirks. "Do you have a thing for Jeanine now, Jake?"

If I could kill Quil and get away with it, I'd do it in a heartbeat.

"I'm not even going to dignify that with a response," I sniff.

"Aww," Quil coos, "did I hurt the Big Alpha's feelings?"

Rolling my eyes, Embry answers; "Ricardo, Fina, and Ana all went in Manny's rental car; Manny and Ricardo wanted to 'catch up' this afternoon," he comments. "And Maria, Lee, and Jeanine all went back together."

"Mhm," I nod. "Well," I grin, "now I have more room in the back, here." I stretch out across the back seat, my legs pushing Quil's.

"Ugh, no!" Quil tries to shove my feet off of his legs.

"My territory," I smirk while extending my limbs as far as they can go.

Quil pouts as he tries, and fails, to get my limbs off of him. "Ugh, Embry!" he whines, "make him sto-op!"

"Jake," Embry sighs while pinching the bridge of his nose, "please. This is a very small car and we have a long drive."

"Fine." I pull my feet back.

"Thank you," Embry nods.

When his focus is entirely on the road I stretch back out again, taking up even more room.

"Em-bry!" Quil whines.

That's for the snarky comments Quil.

Ah, revenge is so sweet.

* * *

Disclaimer: Don't own anything.

Flyaway Dove, an awesome super-speedy-quick beta. Big hugs.

Nothing much happened in this chappie (Jake and Leah do the do – which will be my "farewell" lemon - we meet Manny, we find out that Ricardo told Manny about Jake, there's a Manny/Jacob confrontation, and then they're going to go back home) and I don't care.

You don't like it then don't read it. I'm too tired fix it and make it have a point. I'm just trying to get this story done right now so I can get back to my onesies.

Plus I'm experiencing a really bad case of cabin fever as I'm studying for my May exams (I have to do14 exams by the way) so pardon the rush-y-ness and rambling-ness of these chapters. But, like I said before, I really don't care. I'm just trying to get this done so that I can work on my onesies.

But right now I don't care. I just got **accepted into university** so I don't really give a fuck about anything right now.

I'm going to go and do fuck all.

Have a nice night.

Lu

AND! Question of the Day: I've been listening to **Metric **lately and got a question from one of their songs. Who would you rather be: **The Beatles **or **The Rolling Stones? **


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